Defining Moments
by Kayla McGowan
Summary: It’s been seven years since the crash on the dark planet. Two years since Jack saw Riddick die. And now the past is coming back to haunt her in more ways then one.Rated for language use and later violence. Please R&R.
1. The Next Chapter

Hello all! This is my first Pitch Black fan fic and i've only decided to publish it on FF.net becuase of a friend's encoragement. Here's hoping you all like it to. Do please read and review. here's chapter 1. Kayla Chapter 1: The Next Chapter  
  
Jack sat in her piloting chair with her knees pulled up to her chest as the autopilot kicked in. Most of the time she hated that damned piece of equipment, if the programming got much better she wouldn't have a job anymore. She took her sunglasses out of her breast pocket and put them on as the ship came out of the planet's protective shadow and into the glare of it's sun.  
  
In the seven years since the crash on the Dark planet Jack had been to a lot of places and done a lot of things both stupid and smart to find peace but being anonymous was the only thing yet that had given her a chance to forget and then feel some sort of peace. That was if there really was peace after everything that had happened in that one seemingly endless night and the things that followed in the years of wondering afterward.  
  
"Everything all set up here?" Captain Tex Manor asked walking into the cockpit of the ship, the forty year old man always seemed to walk in right when she wanted a moment or two alone to think. It was as he put it, a talent.  
  
"Yes sir." Jack said sitting up properly again and grinning, her thoughtfulness all but gone in a moment as she put her headset back on. Technically they weren't supposed to take them off when they were on duty but there were moments...  
  
"You ready to go down to mess O'Donnell?" He asked but she shook her head.  
  
"I want to sit in the light for a while." She answered. "The light is why I like this particular run more then the others Captain."  
  
"I should give up asking shouldn't I?" He shook his head as he took his dark cap off his head and played around with his auburn hair, making it stand up in static spikes for a moment before putting his cap back again, squashing the spikes flat as he did so.  
  
"Might be a good idea sir. The answer will never change." She nodded. "I like the light too much."  
  
"I don't blame you." He shrugged; he was one of the only people to know who she really was and what had really happened after the crash. He turned to leave then turned around again and said. "One more thing before I leave you to your light O'Donnell." The captain put his hand on the back of her chair. "There's a Merc on board, he won't leave us to go about our normal business until he's spoken to you about Riddick. He'll pay you for whatever information you give him."  
  
"I don't talk to Mercs." Jack stiffened and her grin was replaced by a frown, it was a good thing that he couldn't see the expression in her eyes through the sunglasses, her eyes spoke of murder. "I don't talk to Mercs and I don't talk about Riddick. The crew doesn't know who I really am and I'd quite like to keep it that way. The damned Merc will only raise unwanted questions." She stared at him. "You said you'd never make me talk to them if I took on this damned job!"  
  
"Don't get hotshot on me Kit!" Tex snapped. "You were good and I wanted you to pilot this thing but you're not that good and if I remember correctly, I did you as much of a favour as you did me! You're going to talk to the Merc Jack and the crew aren't going to know you as anyone but Kit O'Donnell, a damned good but cocky as hell pilot. I'm having you talk to a Merc; I have Sam and John talk to Mercs all the time. The stupid ass isn't going to touch you unless he wants to get himsef thrown out into space."  
  
"I'm not going to talk to that fuckin' Merc!" She hissed getting uptight.  
  
"You are or you're going to give up that seat to Danny, you know how much he'd love that. Does demotion sound like fun to you?" Tex said evenly. "I'll see you in mess in ten minutes and you can give me your answer. The merc or your seat."  
  
"Damn you." She hissed after the captain had left but it wasn't the captain she was cursing as she looked at the planet's red sun. Riddick seemed to like to pop in and out of her life, he couldn't physically anymore but the damned Mercs wouldn't believe that if she had showed them a body. He had tricked them once and she wasn't going to be given the chance to trick them again. Only thing was, this time she wasn't lying to them, Richard B. Riddick had died. She had seen him.  
  
She had been trying to move on and separated herself from everything that Riddick had embodied for two years now; only the stupid Mercs wouldn't let it rest.  
  
The inquiry into the crash on the dark planet had been inconclusive so they had happily said that Riddick had killed all those people even though they had no proof of that either. They wouldn't listen to her or the holy man, she was a girl that was happy to pretend to be a boy and the interviewer didn't like Imam because he was a "religious nut". The one thing it did do however was up the bounty on Riddick's head and she was the one paying for it now.  
  
Jack couldn't say however, that Riddick had gone all servile instinct on her and split. Iman had, he ran as far as he possibly could and as fast as he was able and only a year after the crash and their living hell. Riddick had become invisible and Jack with him, he had stuck with her, though why she could never really be sure. With Riddick there always seemed to be other motives and as long as she hadn't threatened his freedom she was as safe as she could be hiding out with a man with a huge bounty on his head. She never really took him being around for granted; she was never given the chance but she had never pitied herself. She would have picked being with Riddick over being alone anyday.  
  
She had known the rules.  
  
She kept her nose clean and stayed inconspicuous. When people started looking at her or Riddick funny, they left and in the middle of the night if possible. If she got herself in trouble with the law he wouldn't rescue her, if she got in trouble with the people of the planet, he wouldn't help her and if the Mercs caught up with her, he wouldn't stick around to save her ass. He taught her how to fight and how to depend on herself. They were some of the most valuable lesions of her life, they taught her how to deal with the fake life she was living now.  
  
Together, they lived a hopscotch life for four years and she never said anything or complained. They left a lot of people behind but she never showed any emotion. He had taught her to let go. People didn't matter but not being alone did and Riddick was the one person she didn't want to leave or get left by. She spent the last of her teen years knowing what it was to be truly expendable, she knew that she might wake up one morning and he'd be gone. To be honest she didn't know why he stuck around at all, in the end she only ever got them into trouble.  
  
He had died doing the one thing that he swore he would never bother to do again; save her life.  
  
They had been leaving a planet where a war had just broken out. Riddick as always wanted nothing to do with it and so she didn't either. She wasn't about to be left behind because of the morals of other people, wither she agreed with them or not was another story all together and not really that relevant under the circumstances at that time. He had gotten himself out unscathed, like he always seemed to manage but she had been stupid again and got caught in the crossfire, she was unharmed but stuck and couldn't for the life of her see a way out. With the bullets flying over her head she was almost too scared to try.  
  
Jack hung her head as she thought about it, sometimes memories were too painful to drag into the present, sometimes the past had no place in the future, these memories were too painful to want to revisit but if she was going to have to talk to the stupid Merc then she had to be able to recall the facts. It didn't hurt telling every gold digging Merc that came her way that Riddick was really dead this time. Dead and gone, disappeared into the killer's legends, after all he had never been recaptured. He would have killed himself before going back to one of the many slams.  
  
Riddick had gone back for her sorry twenty-year-old ass. "I've saved your life too many damned times for you to loose it now." He had growled as he arrived at her side unexpectedly. Jack thought he would already be in space and without her. She thought that she would already have been forgotten, part of his past like the many other people they had left behind.  
  
They were almost out of no man's land, so close to safety and then she was on the ground and he was hit as he pulled her up by her belt. She couldn't remember where he had been hit but he wasn't dead, not then, just in pain.  
  
"Come on Riddick!" She had yelled trying to get him back to his feet like he had been trying to get her back to hers only moments before.  
  
"Get your damned ass off this fucking planet!" He had yelled at her pushing her away. "There's no fucking way I'm going to let you die saving my fucking ass." He said the last line through clenched teeth as the second bullet hit.  
  
She winced as the sun came into full view and she had to put the light filter up. She had had her ten minutes of light and it was the light that would keep her mind off the darkness that haunted her dreams and her life. The darkness that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't escape or forget and the faces... She couldn't figure out what was worse, the darkness and the beasts or the faces of those who had died, frozen as she had seen them look at her the last time.  
  
Everyone died or everyone left, that was the story of her life.  
  
She took her sunglasses off and folded them up before putting them back into her breast pocket and putting on and zipping up her black vest jacket with it's many useful pockets, over her brown t-shirt. The light however couldn't keep out her memories. They were as tangible as ever.  
  
It wasn't Jack that walked out into the main corridor of the huge cargo and passenger ship but her latest character creation, a girl that had no conspicuous past or burdens of guilt, a part that she could almost get lost playing, that was why she loved being Kit O'Donnell so much but even Kit couldn't keep that something of Jack from surfacing in her attitude and character.  
  
"How was the light today Kit baby? Ready to give up your job then?" The twenty-seven year old co-pilot, Danny Becker sat down next to her when she got herself seated at one of the tables in the mess room. "And all because you won't speak to a stupid Merc. You're bloody stupid girl. Nothing more then a stupid kid." That was what Becker's favourite pastime was, tormenting her.  
  
"How the hell do you think it was Becker?" She answered. "The light was bright and oops, that rhymed. You're only sore that a girl a whole five years younger then you managed to get the job you wanted. Need I remind you of who the better pilot is?"  
  
"As cold as always." Samantha Anderson put her tray down on Jack's right and sat down. "The stupid Merc won't bite."  
  
"I know that Sam. Why the hell do you think I'm going to talk to the idiot?" She took a bite of whatever was in the brown sloppy mix in her bowl and made a face. It tasted as close to crap as could be, but then the taste never did change.  
  
"I'm glad to hear you say that." The captain said sitting down next to them with John behind him.  
  
"Why is he wanting to asking you about Riddick anyway? I heard he was killed in a little war near Demedia." John asked squirting a ton of ketchup in the bowl with the brown muck and mixing the two together. The color certainly didn't improve much, though the taste might have slightly, though she doubted it.  
  
"I was in Demedia, was the pilot of a little ship that was hauling crystals from there to a classified position. I saw Riddick, saw him get killed saving some stupid kid." She shrugged. "I've told the Mercs over and over again that he's dead but they seem to like to come back for more conformation. Riddick would have been better off leaving that kid to her fate."  
  
"Like I said," Sam smiled taking a bite out of a piece of bread. "Stupid."  
  
"You really have to get better food on this sucker." John complained after taking a bite and making a nasty face that said it all but also made it obvious that he was happy enough with her explanation. Sam on the other hand looked puzzled again and clearly didn't get something.  
  
"Riddick's this big killer right, I mean his bounty is one of the largest out there." She said.  
  
"You're point is?" Danny gave her a blank look.  
  
"My point is: why would he die saving some kid's life?" She pointed her fork at him and frowned her line of thought obviously clear in her head even if the idiot on the other side of Jack didn't get it. "I mean, Riddick took lives, hell of a lot of lives but he wasn't superman, he didn't save them."  
  
"Well I know what I saw. Damn! I was there and Riddick, the feared saved that kid's life or I'm an ass." Jack said suddenly not feeling hungry for the slop in her bowl. Those people never got to know Riddick, what did they know!  
  
"Well we always knew you were stuck up yourself." Danny laughed at his own joke, not caring that he was the only one who really found it funny. Jack stood up abruptly, her meal totally forgotten as the blood pounded in her ears. It wasn't like she could tell them that she was the stupid kid that Riddick got killed saving. She'd never be trusted by any of them again if they found out that she had lived and thrived with a convicted murderer for five years.  
  
"Where's the Merc's quarters?" She asked the captain before leaving. Her problem was that she liked belonging a little too much.  
  
"E7." Was the reply. "He doesn't eat dinner."  
  
Jack walked swiftly down the corridors till she reached room E7. She wanted to get the ordeal over with as fast as possible so that she could go get a couple hours of sleep before all the lights automatically turned off. She could never get to sleep if it was dark. She always imagined sounds, their sounds. Even the thought made her shudder.  
  
She knocked on the door but there was no reply. She waited for a couple of minutes, not that it took ten minutes to reach the door, then she kicked it solidly. It made a satisfying thudding sound that seemed to let a little bit of steam out of her blood so she did it once more before walking away to her own quarters, angry that she had to put seeing the damned beast off.  
  
The Aurora's quarters could be said to be nothing less then a small walk in closet, big enough for a small single bed and a small table and chair with a shelf for storage above the bed where she kept her clothes and meagre collection of belongings. It was bigger then some of the places that she had lived in but it was certainly not the biggest.  
  
"Lights!" She commanded as she opened the door to her small room and then she stopped dead in her tracks. There was a tall but lean man standing in her room with his back to her looking at the one picture that she had of Riddick and herself, a picture that had been taken by accident but that had enough sentimental value for her to it to keep.  
  
"Kit O'Donnell?" He asked. His voice wasn't unpleasant to listen to, smooth and soft, but there was an underlying current that could only be described as purely dangerous. He wasn't the kind of man that anyone would really want to mess with unless they had no other choice. His voice alone would intimidate most people but most people hadn't been trained by a killer.  
  
"Yeah?" She crossed her arms. "Are you the stupid Merc going after Riddick? You not afraid that you might end up dead? A lot of your buddies that went looking for him have."  
  
"So he is still alive Kit or should I say, Jack?" He turned around, a grin on his face, his brown eyes sweeping over her like the eyes of a hungry animal and she knew she had been right; this was not a man to toy around with. She closed the door behind her.  
  
"Riddick is dead! How many times do I have to tell you bloody stupid people that? My stupidity killed him, get over it already and move on." She glared at him.  
  
"Why didn't he kill you?"  
  
"He saved my life you idiot. He had invested far too much in me, God! He invested his life." She sat down on her bed and took off her heavy black boots and then her vest jacket, but not before pulling a candy bar from out of one pocket. "He got shot twice, I saw him take both hits. He's not alive."  
  
"You feel guilty about the death of a mindless, heartless killer?"  
  
"We must be talking about two different people."  
  
"And why is that sweetheart?"  
  
"He wasn't mindless, he wouldn't have escaped so many of you before his death if he had been mindless and he wouldn't have been able to kill half the people he had killed either if he didn't have a brain." She took a bite out of the chocolate.  
  
"Alright. Mindless he wasn't. Do you feel guilty over it?"  
  
"What's your name Merc? You know mine; it's only fare that I know yours. Maybe I can use it against you sometime." She said as she finished off the bar and laid down flat on the bed, her hands behind her head and her ankles crossed. "I'm not too high up there for a little bit of blackmail."  
  
"Bradley, James Bradley." He answered her question. "What do you mean he took two shots?"  
  
"I tripped, he pulled me to my feet and in the process of getting me up again got hit by two bullets. Is that clear enough for you Mr. Bradley?"  
  
"Why are you so upset over this guy? He is a killer, as evil as they get." He said and she laughed, a hollow empty laugh, like she was just laughing to unnerve him.  
  
"Like I said, the man saved my life on more then one occasion and each time he didn't have to. That wasn't the actions of an evil man. He wasn't evil. You don't know what evil is."  
  
"And you do?"  
  
"Better then you do. I can name people far more evil that are walking around free, or at least used to walk around." She said thinking of Johns, Riddick told her about the conversation that they had had in the canyon about her. She knew the truth and now wished she hadn't shed the tears over him that she had but then she had just been a silly fifteen year old girl. A lot had changed. "Why don't you track those men down Mr. Bradley? Close the door on your way out."  
  
"I'm not done asking you questions yet?"  
  
"What else then?"  
  
"Do you recognise me?"  
  
"Should I?" She closed her eyes.  
  
"I met you and Riddick when you were seventeen, only I didn't know that he was Riddick or I would have put him in the slam then. We lived next door to each other for nearly three months before you disappeared."  
  
"I disappeared a lot. I left a lot of people behind."  
  
"I know."  
  
"To be honest, I don't know why you and your kind keep going after Riddick. If I remember you right at all then Riddick didn't get in your way or hurt you or anyone." She said as she swivelled her head around to look at him. "Riddick is dead! Let him be bloody well dead!"  
  
"Chill out Jack. I'm not here to take you in."  
  
"Goodbye Mr. Bradley. You try and talk to me again or tell my crewmates or anyone else for that matter that I'm anyone else then Kit O'Donnell and I'll gladly take on a few of Riddick's more charming personality traits, after all you didn't think I lived with him for five years without picking up a thing or two?" She threatened coldly and the tall Merc made his way out of her room, slamming her door behind him.  
  
"Damned merc." She swore as she sat up and scanned the room before laying down again, checking for any sign of planted devices. The walls were bare; a clean metallic grey, the bed was silver, the sheets and pillows white and most importantly the light was strong and clear. She could never get to sleep without the light on anymore. It was part of her condition. When the lights went out, so did her peace. 


	2. Back

Here is chapter 2. It's a bit longer then I had expected but I figure that that's alright sometimes. Tell me what you think and thanks to those who have reviewed so far.

Kayla

Chapter 2: Back  
  
Richard B. Riddick sat in the main cargo bay of _The Aurora_ with his back up against the wall and his shaved head resting against the cold metal hull, not that the cold mattered much. His eyes were closed beneath his dark welding goggles but that didn't mean that he wasn't alert. He knew everything that was going on around him.  
  
Next to him on the floor was a bag. In that bag was everything that Riddick owned, a couple of changes of clothes, a few personnel affects and some rather interesting weaponry that he didn't tend to use unless he had to.  
  
Riddick was on the hunt again.  
  
The lights went on and Riddick's eyes opened, a kid walked in, a girl, no more then fifteen or sixteen but she didn't move past the doorway. She just peered around the shadowed room curiosity written all over her face till a woman's voice called her away and the room once more went dark.  
  
One corner of his mouth twitched into a strange sort of smile. The kid reminded him of another kid he had known.  
  
Jack.  
  
Her face came unbidden into his mind for a moment. Jack was the whole reason that he was aboard The Aurora. She was his problem and he had a feeling that it wouldn't be long until she needed him again. That's why he had started his hunt.  
  
He stretched out his shoulders, which were feeling kind of tight from sitting in one place for too long. Part of him wondered if Jack would still be the wide-eyed adolescent that he had forced off of Demedia two years ago or wither she would have hardened and changed without someone to protect her. The bullet wound in his back still gave him a little bit of trouble now and then, reminded him of what he had done. He didn't know why he kept saving that kid's life; all he knew was that he would again if he had to.  
  
Riddick shook his head. He had always told her that he wasn't going to save her ass so that she would be motivated to keep up. So she would learn quickly and up until that day it had worked. She was only ever half a heart beat behind him and then suddenly she wasn't there. Not that it had entirely been her own fault but he hadn't been about to leave her behind.  
  
As much as he hated to admit it, he hadn't been looking forward to the day that she decided it was time she lead her own life and she didn't need him anymore. Riddick had in some way become attached to her and she seemed to need him too. There was only once difference between the two of them, he knew that he would never leave her but she didn't and something always stopped him from telling her the truth of the matter.  
  
He closed his eyes as he thought about that day in Demedia. He had seen the look of fear on her face and the grief also, a grief that had turned to joy and thankfulness that was written all over her face when he had appeared by her side.  
  
Riddick shook his head. If only she hadn't tripped. He had grabbed her by the belt, barely breaking his stride and half pulled half dragged her to her feet, her long dark hair spilling out of it's ponytail and dragging slightly in the dirt and it was almost like the minutes Jack was up again he was down in the dirt with his back stringing like he'd been bit by a rather large hornet.  
  
_"Come on Riddick!"_ She had yelled and he had seen the look of terror cross her face again.  
  
That was the past. This was the present. It had taken him six months after setting his mind to it to track Jack down. The kid seemed to have learned her lesions better then he had thought, she covered her tail well, under a number of different aliases and sidestepping. But she wasn't good enough to fool him for good.  
  
He had sat there for hours, until he was sure that all the lights on the ship had been turned off and ninety percent or more of the people onboard would be in their rooms or asleep in their bunks. He had already found Jack's room, so it didn't take much for him to move off into the darkness, his hunt almost finished.

* * *

It wasn't hard to fall asleep as long as the lights were on, only the lights didn't stay on all night, there came a point where they were all automatically shut off. She could at least hope that she got to her bunk a good bit before lights off. But how well she slept always depended upon how sound asleep she was when the lights all went out, when she was left in darkness, alone.  
  
That particular night, Jack had far too much on her mind to be sleeping soundly when the lights went out. The imagined noises were the first thing to disturb her sleeping mind, the clicking of their claws, the beat of their leathery wings, their screech. And then there were the images that flashed through her mind of the winged hammer-headed beasts. All of them searching with their night vision for her, scenting the air for her blood.  
  
She started to toss and turn, unable to wake up but still trying desperately to escape.  
  
Their faces flashed across her mind's all too clear eyes. The holy man's boys, the antiquities dealer, the Merc with his baby blues, Shazza and Zeke, Fry... Riddick's face was mixed in with theirs, his eyes shinning a silvery-purple in a way that used to fascinate and frighten her at the same time.  
  
_"Where can I get eyes like those?"_ A younger version of her voice asked.  
  
There was the sound of scraping metal around her and footsteps. Were they getting in? Was she running? It was too dark to tell!  
  
Panic rose up in her throat like a bile as cold, sharp metal touched her throat. That wasn't apart of her dream; she was never killed in her dream. Riddick had killed Johns before he had had a chance to seriously put his plan of killing her into action.  
  
A hand clamped over her mouth and a weight pinned her to her bed as her eyes shot wide open. She didn't make a sound and neither did it. All she could see was two bright and shimmering orbs in the darkness around them. She held her breath.  
  
"Don't move kid. There's a blade at your throat encase you get all excitable on me. Take a deep breath Jack and calm down." A male voice said, it was deep and slight husky. She recognised it instantly and froze. She couldn't recognise it, Riddick was dead, and she had seen him fall. It just wasn't possible.  
  
She had to still be dreaming!  
  
She moved her fingers ever so slowly to just below her hip where she kept a flash light encase she got a call up to the cockpit in the middle of the night or encase she just needed the light. She gripped it tightly, wondering for a moment if she was doing the right thing before turning it on and flashing it full in his eyes before he could stop her.  
  
"Damnit!" He yelled and rolled away, cutting her jaw ever so slightly with his small curved, hand held blade. She scanned him with the torch, guilt eating at her the whole time. She had killed this man; she would wake up at any moment and find herself staring at the bottom of her shelf. But this was all too real to be one of her dreams.  
  
"Thanks for the warm welcome back Jack, or should I call you Kit?" Richard B. Riddick said as he picked himself up and looked her up and down.  
  
"Don't get self-righteous on me now you dead bastard and get out of my dreams! I've enough happening in my head without you in it too. You told me to leave! You made me leave! I did what I was told to do. Quit haunting me!" She was on her feet in an instant and glaring at him, her torch held like a weapon. Light was one of the only weapons that could hinder Riddick's progress but it was only ever a temporary weapon.  
  
As much as she wanted him to be the one getting to his feet in front of her she didn't. She had left him on that cursed planet because he had told her to. Because she thought he was dead. But then she wanted him to be there, wanted to feel safe walking through a dark corridor or laying awake in a dark room just because she knew he could see, because she knew he was there.  
  
"I don't take orders from kids." Riddick said as he grabbed her hands and pinned her to the wall, his face inches from hers. All it had taken was seconds for him to disarm her, just seconds. "You're not dreaming Jack. I'm not here to haunt you; you're doing a good enough job of that yourself. Guilt won't get you anywhere."  
  
"I saw you take those hits!" She struggled against his hold on her wrists and only managed to hurt herself. He wasn't about to let go. "I know what I saw, I know..." Her voice trailed off but his grip on her was very real as was his warm breath on her face and neck.  
  
"What, did you forget who it is that I am? A bullet or two might kill you..."  
  
"Don't you start your damn, 'I'm immortal' crap. It doesn't wash with me Riddick, remember, I lived with you for five years." She cut him off.  
  
"Why aren't you angry?" He chuckled. "You're not an easy person to catch up with Jackie, I'll give you that much."  
  
"Only the Mercs seem to know who I am Riddick and they don't tend to come after me that often unless they are after you, you had better give me a damn sight more then that and let me go."  
  
"Only if you're not going to try and claw my eyes out again."  
  
"Let me GO!" She twisted herself in just the right way to force him to let go of one of her arms and send her sprawling onto her bed again. She reached under her pillow with one hand but was slid off the bed and onto the floor by a mighty tug from Riddick. She was shocked and dazed but she shouldn't have been, Riddick was still bigger, stronger and more experienced then she was.  
  
"Looking for this?" He asked holding up a small handgun as he pinned her to the floor with his knee.  
  
"Fuck you Riddick." She yelled at him, fear crossing her face for a moment.  
  
"What were you going to do? Shoot me?" He said, she stopped struggling and paled before dissolving into tears.

* * *

Ten minutes later, she was laying on her bed again and Riddick was sitting in her chair on the other side of the room, tapping his blade off the table and making her want to twitch or at least yell at him to stop but she knew that that wouldn't get her anywhere. At least the tears had stopped. She cursed herself over and over again as she lay in the dark looking up at where her shelf should be and seeing only darkness. He would only have seen her tears as a sign of weakness and weak she was most defiantly not.  
  
"Why Kit?" He asked finally.  
  
"Dunno, it just came to me, she came to me. I'm a good play actor Riddick, you know that, all I needed was a character and Kit O'Donnell seemed to fit alright." She answered. "What happened to you after I left?"  
  
"I got picked up by some stupid medic." He said. "He pulled those bullets out of me. The kid obviously didn't know who I was."  
  
"You're a life worth saving too." Jack whispered.  
  
"Only you seem to think so Kid."  
  
"Fry did too. She wouldn't have gone back for you if she hadn't. She saw something in you." She licked her lips searching for something to say. What she wanted to say was, she saw what I saw, but it didn't seem quite right somehow.  
  
"How did you become a pilot?"  
  
"I just did."  
  
"Doesn't wash. You need a licence to fly a commercial cargo ship, especially one that carries passengers."  
  
"I met a guy called Bret Robson after I got rid of the diamonds we were hauling about and hid the cruiser. I had only been living with him for two weeks when he introduced me to Captain Manor, his pilot had gone and got himself killed in some crash and was looking for a new one. Bret thought that I should try and get the job, I got the job but didn't count on getting sent to a flight school."  
  
"What do you mean living with him?"  
  
"As in I lived with him. After you died I had nowhere to go, Bret's a decent guy. I was seeing him and living with him for eight months before his death stopped it all. I'm only sorry that I can't tell him who I really am; he's dead now anyway, one of the Mercs killed him." She bit her lip. "One of the Mercs that was after you."  
  
Bret had been decent, a really nice guy who wanted nothing more for her then what she wanted for herself, that and happiness. He never pressured her into anything or told her what to do. He hadn't even said anything about the nightmares that she had started having after Riddick had died, not that he knew about Riddick, or asked why she had looked into getting a shine job done (something she never went through with) or why she got the outline of a strange hammer-headed creature tattooed on her shoulder. As long as she was happy all that didn't matter to him. He was just a decent guy; she might even have really loved him if she had been given the chance.  
  
He had been the first to show her real love and affection. He was also one of the many people to die because of her. The damned Mercs were after Riddick and the only way they figured they could do that was to go though her and Bret had gotten in the way. They tended not to get physical with her anymore; one civilian death was enough for them it seemed.  
  
"He showed me what it was to be loved, wanted even needed. I'm only sorry that he got in the way. Anyway, before Bret was killed Manor sent me to a flight school, it was intensive, I was one of a group of four pilots who learned in three months what everyone else learned in a year. It gave me something to do, to focus on. You were too good at controlling things Riddick, I almost didn't know what to do with myself after I was on my own." She took a deep breath before continuing. "Sure you taught me how to fight and pilot and track people and things but you didn't teach me how to deal when you decided that you'd had enough of me tagging along."  
  
"You thought all you were doing for those five years was tagging along?"  
  
"I didn't think Riddick. I knew, I knew that it was only a matter of time before I woke up and you were gone and there would be no note telling me where the hell you had decided to go." She admitted. "Bret saw something in me, said that I looked like a chick that was ready to take on the world, only I'd lost my opponent." She chuckled. "I dunno, it made sense."  
  
"What happened after flight school?"  
  
"I graduated with my commercial license and started to work for Captain Manor on this very ship. The pay is alright and most of the trips don't last longer then two weeks. The crew's nice enough though I would happily part with my co-pilot, I can't stand his attitude but that's life." She yawned. "And the food sucks."  
  
"When did the nightmares start again?"  
  
"A couple of days after I started living with Bret. I took to sleeping with the lights on while I was living with him and still do when I'm off this ship, he left his flat to me, knew I had nowhere else to go so it seemed. The lights go off here at certain designated times. I only sleep for a few hours, and if I think I need more I sleep up in my chair, there's always light in the cockpit."  
  
There were two loud knocks on her door and she flipped off the bed and looked at Riddick. He had nowhere to go and she suddenly didn't know what to do. If it was the Merc again then they were screwed if it was one of her crewmates she was screwed, either way it didn't make for a pleasant situation.  
  
She spun around in a circle looking around her, the shelf was too open and there was no way that it would hold Riddick's weight anyway. The bed again was too open and if it was the Merc or Sam at the door there was no way she could stop them from coming in. Anyway, the damned Merc still had her picture.  
  
She made a mental note to get it back.  
  
"Get under the bed." She hissed at Riddick. "You won't like what you see under there but times have changed. I'm not living under your rules anymore." His silvery eyes scanned her and she was sure there would be a frown on his face if she could see it but he slid under the bed as she opened the door.  
  
Sam was standing at the door with a thermos and two mugs in her hand as well as a couple of envelopes. If Jack knew Sam half as well as she thought she did, there would be some sort of food in that thermos and as much as she hated to admit it, the chocolate bar really hadn't done much in the way of filling her up.  
  
It wasn't that Captain Manor didn't provide food for them; he did, in the form of a brown half liquid, half solid that, while it had all the nutrition in it that they needed to survive and thrive, it just didn't taste good. Each of them dealt with it differently.  
  
Sam wouldn't eat it and brought her own food supplies along, Jack would eat as much of the stuff as she could handle but relied on tasteless protein bars and candy bars to get her through. John put hell of a lot of ketchup in his, Danny just ate it to prove he could and the Captain never seemed to eat anything at all.  
  
"You didn't eat tonight figured I'd bring you something." Sam walked into the room and sat down on the chair that only moments before Riddick had been sitting in.  
  
"Please tell me its not goo."  
  
"Heck no! I don't eat that crap. Tomato soup, it's as good as it comes and I figured that you could use some company now that the lights are out." Sam said as Jack pulled a battery-powered lamp off her shelf and put it on the table so that it illuminated them. "How's the nightmares these days?"  
  
"They're nightmares." Jack eagerly accepted the mug that Sam offered her. "They don't get any better. Only the light keeps them away and there is never enough of that."  
  
"You should move back into the bunk room. That way you might feel safer, anyway, there's more room in there." Sam said as she gulped down her own mug and watched Jack do the same. "And two sets of eyes."  
  
They had shared one of the large crew quarters when Jack had started working on The Aurora. That was until the nightmares got too bad. Jack had moved out voluntarily even though Sam said she didn't have to and had been trying to get her to move back in ever since. The only thing was that it was enough that Jack didn't get restful sleep without keeping Sam up half the night too.  
  
"We've been through this Sam. I'm not going back to the bunkroom. The only other set of eyes that had ever made me feel safe had a shine job and could see in the dark. I thought at one point that nothing could kill him."  
  
"Who you're dad?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"A boyfriend?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"A teacher?"  
  
"Something like that. It doesn't mater now anyway; I'm out in the big bad world and not doing too badly for myself." Jack smiled the last part was a tag on for Riddick's sake, not that he probably cared all that much.  
  
"How much do you want to bet that one of these is from Adrian?" Sam held up the two envelopes.  
  
"I take it that you knew which one. They both mine?" She frowned. She had been with Adrian for three months learning what she could from him as an engineer but making him think that she was in it for the relationship. When she started feeling uneasy, she found some guy with a skill so that she could better her knowledge, learn what Riddick hadn't been able to teach her or never got the chance to anyway.  
  
"It's over between me and Adrian, only he doesn't know it yet." Jack took another candy bar out of her bag and sat down on the edge of the bed conscious that Riddick was under it and able to hear every word they were saying. This was not the time for girl talk.  
  
Normally Sam wasn't the gossiping type. She was the ship's security officer and could hold her own with the men but every once and a while she would seek Jack out for a conversation of the girly type and most of the time Jack either indulged her or enjoyed the conversation. There were only three other female crewmembers on board, Sam and Jack called them the three Cs, Crystal, Caren and Carly. They dealt with any passengers that were on board _The Aurora_ and tended to stay out of Jack and Sam's way. The three Cs were as girly as girly could be.  
  
Jack looked at the floor before taking the envelopes out of Sam's hand and opening the first. It was from the Merc, there were three things inside, the photograph of her and Riddick that was unharmed and that she pinned back up to the bottom of the shelf, three hundred paper credits and a note.  
  
"Who's in the picture?" Sam asked.  
  
"Someone from my past." Jack answered unfolding the piece of paper and scanning the words. It was a basic invitation to help the Merc hunt Riddick. Something she wasn't about to agree to.  
  
She looked at it in disgust and folded it back up again and put it up on the shelf. She hated Mercs. She wasn't about to help anyone find Riddick but she almost had to laugh at the irony of the whole situation. Riddick was hidden under her bed and the Merc was only a hallway away sleeping as if everything was alright when really his life was in danger that was, if Riddick took it into his head to go hunting.  
  
"How many guys has there been now anyway Kit? Six or seven?"  
  
"Not that many Sam. What do you think I am? There have only bee five if you include Bret but he was different." She opened the other envelope. Sam had been right about it's sender, inside was an extremely soppy letter from Adrian, which she scanned and then screwed up into a ball in disgust. She had always thought that women were meant to be the soppy ones.  
  
"I'll see you in six hours eh Kit and gonna actually think for once about moving back into the bunkroom. I could use the company." Sam stood up and walked to the door. "And you might find that life will be a little easier there. At least you'd have someone to wake you up from one of those nightmares."  
  
"It might be easier for me but it wouldn't be easier for you." Jack replied as the older women walked out the door and the door was shut behind her.  
  
"Five?" Riddick said as he left his hiding place with a grace and agility that astounded her. A man built like he was shouldn't be able to move like he did.  
  
"Don't say a word." She held up a hand and shook her head.  
  
"Then do you want to explain the armoury under your bed?" He gestured to where he had been hidden only moments before.  
  
"Nope." She said simply.  
  
"Then tell me about the nightmares."  
  
"They are the same as they used to be." She said laying down on the bed as he sat in the chair again. "It's dark and there are those noises and they come out. I can never escape but as of yet they haven't killed gotten the chance to kill me. Something used to always stop them but they've been getting closer and closer to getting me every night for the past two years." She yawned again. "Then there are the faces of the dead that like to come back to haunt me. Yours has been among those as of late too."  
  
"I thought we got rid of those Jack."  
  
"I didn't, I was too afraid of the dark remember?"  
  
"I know but you stopped having those dreams."  
  
"I know I did but did you ever stop to wonder why?" She twisted around so she was looking at him, feeling very much like a seventeen year old again. "Remember the night that I got bit in my dream and you tried to wake me up but in the process I bit you?"  
  
"How could I forget?"  
  
"You forget a lot of things Riddick. You forget people." She replied.  
  
"I still have the teeth marks." He countered. "I was only fifteen, Imam had just left because he couldn't deal. You told me that they couldn't get us anymore. You told me that at least for that one night you weren't going anywhere. I always knew you would be there for sure in the morning when you got that look on your face, the one that you had on when you told me that."  
  
"What does that have to do with the nightmares?"  
  
"Those things couldn't kill you. Somehow I knew that if you were close, they couldn't kill me either and so they couldn't get near me in my dreams so I stopped being afraid of them for a while, until you weren't there again." She rubbed at her eyes, they were heavy and scratchy. She was tired but to sleep would mean revisiting the dark again.  
  
"Go to sleep Jack. I'm not about to go anywhere." Riddick said. 


	3. No Way!

Hello everyone and welcome to Chapter 3. Thanks to all of you who have reviewed. I'm glad that you're enjoying my story so far and that you will keep reading and telling me what you think. Thanks in advance.

Kayla

Chapter 3: No Way!  
  
There was no movement in the room expect for the rise and fall of her chest or every so often a twitch of her hand or foot and her breathing slowly evened out and deepened. He hadn't expected the fight that she had put up and he hadn't expected the blatant denial of his existence.  
  
But then, there was a lot about Jack that he didn't know anymore. She had obviously found ways to protect her self. Her numerous aliases seemed to be one of those ways and to hold on to 'Jack' she grabbed onto what she saw as the truths and held on for dear life.  
  
She had hardened, toughened, learned to get along in the world and fight for herself but she was also skittish, shy of people and highly selective of her friends. She had lost her adolescence, her wide-eyed wonder and curiosity; instead she was guarded and untrusting. He didn't like it. She looked like Jack; smelt like her, walked and talked like her but in her fear she seemed to have lost part of herself, the important part, the 'Jack' part.  
  
He crossed his arms across his chest and took a breath of the overly sterilised air. Like a hospital. She was as close to insanity as she was to clarity and one thing could push her either way and he had no idea what she was holding on to, keeping her mind clear. Somewhere along the line she had let fear take over.  
  
Was it something that had been hiding under the surface the whole time that they had roomed the planets together? Was it something brought on by the crash and held at bay by the strength that she seemed to have gathered from him? Had what she thought was his death finally brought it back to the surface after they had buried it?  
  
Too many questions and Riddick didn't like it. He liked for things to be clear-cut. That was just the way he was.  
  
Things had been a lot easier for him before Jack. If he had just gone with his instincts and left right after he had made sure that she was safe then maybe he wouldn't have become so human again. That spark of humanity that Carolyn had struck in him might have stayed a spark, if Jack hadn't been so stubborn in holding on to him.  
  
Life had been a lot simpler before Jack. He conceded; hell of a lot simpler.

* * *

Jack was woken from a sound sleep by a shrill beeping noise from a headset sitting on her table and when she opened her eyes the small red light above her door was flashing, illuminating the room and the man sitting in the chair at her table. She had to look twice before she realised that she hadn't been dreaming and that Riddick really hadn't left her.  
  
She rolled out of her bed and got groggily to her feet. He held out the headset to her and she put it on quickly and pressed the activation button.  
  
"Kit here." She answered it.  
  
"Don't tell me you were actually asleep Kit?" Captain Manor said but there was an edge to his voice.  
  
"Sorry sir. I was." She answered pulling her boots onto her feet and strapping them in place. "What's the big emergency?"  
  
The first part of the message she was unable to hear because of some unknown static then, "...we have new cargo to pick up, four scientists." She closed her eyes and licked her lips trying to wake up properly. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept that soundly.  
  
"Is that the emergency?"  
  
"Didn't you hear me? We're coming up on a small asteroid field. That's the emergency. Get your ass into the damned cockpit before Danny does something stupid. We didn't detect it on time to move around it or stop the ship." Tex sounded annoyed. "I need to get you guys sleeping shifts."  
  
"I'll be there as soon as." She said and then addressed Danny. "Try and slack off as much speed as you can slowly without doing any damage until I get there. I won't be too long."  
  
"I hear you hot shot." Danny answered and she muted her end of the headset so she could speak to Riddick but still hear what was going on.  
  
"I have a job to do." She said.  
  
"So I gathered." He threw her a polo-necked top and she gave him a questioning look. He touched his finger to his neck just below his jaw line and she touched hers feeling the cut that he had unintentionally given her during their tussle earlier.  
  
"There's a Merc on this ship and he's looking to track you down." She said taking her t-shirt off and throwing it onto the end of her bed before putting on the top that Riddick and thrown her. She took her wrist guards out of a small bag and put them on to cover the angry red marks around her wrist and put her vest jacket on over the top, making sure there was a fresh candy bar in the right pocket before zipping it up and taking the picture off the bottom of her shelf.  
  
"What's with the tattoo?"  
  
"You had better leave my room before he comes back to snoop. Here's a spare headset if you want it and I don't think you ever saw this." She handed him the headset and the photograph and ignoring his question. "Keep them. I'm on channel eight if you need anything and keep out of the Merc's way. I'd hate to have to find out that he'd wasted you. I can't loose you again yet, there's too much I need to know first."  
  
"Cute picture."  
  
"Thought you'd like it." She smiled sarcastically then left the room at a jog.  
  
She rolled up her sleeves as she ran through the corridors and up the steel ladder in the tubing that ran along side the lift. She hated the lift, it took too much time and with every second that ticked by she lost manoeuvring room. _They said this route was clear!_ She yelled in her head. She wouldn't have put them on this course if she hadn't checked it out first with the main nav centre for this cargo route.  
  
She was already running manoeuvring tactics through her head when she reached _The Aurora's_ cockpit and her annoyance was only fuelled when she got there to see Danny sitting in the main piloting chair. Her lip curled slightly as she unmuted her headset.  
  
"Get out of my chair Danny before I mess up your face." She growled and Danny jumped. Over the headset she could here the chuckles of their crewmates as they listened to her threat. Danny always tried to over step the mark.  
  
"Well someone needed to pilot this baby why you were catching up on your beauty sleep. It seems not to have made much of a difference to your appearance though." He snarled back but he moved back to the co-pilot's seat feeling the laughter of his peers perhaps a little too keenly.  
  
"Shut the fuck up!" She glared at him jumping into her chair and buckling up. "Captain, I'm strapped in and waiting for orders." She wasn't really waiting for a command of any sort. She was already flying to her work, bringing systems to life that Danny seemed too stupid to even think about. _Punk!_ She thought.  
  
Jack rapidly pulled up two small screens to her left. On one she pulled up a close up view of the asteroid field and on the other she pulled up the energy level and speed monitor. Her eyes searched for any gap she could swing The Aurora's heavy ass into without getting her hit as she waited for a response or acknowledgement from Captain Manor.  
  
"It's about time Kit. Can you bring her about before we hit?"  
  
"Our tail end might get a bump and a scratch or two." She started flicking switches rapidly and barking short orders at Danny who was doing his best to keep up with everything she was demanding of him.  
  
"How bad?"  
  
"Dunno yet. Still looking for a gap." She kicked a panel under the main control and lights over her head flared on and she pulled her sunglasses out of her pocket and put them on, yelling for Danny to do the same as she released the light filter for a clearer view.  
  
"Just get us out of this O'Donnell and in one full and functioning piece if you don't mind." Tex snapped.  
  
"I'm working on it." Jack gritted her teeth as she reached above her head and flicked a blue switch. "You have to get an emergency break for this baby Captain."  
  
"That would tare _The Aurora_ apart." John's voice said.  
  
"I know that. It's called a joke John." She hissed as she focused on the scene unfolding in front of her. Her hands gripped the controls tightly as she fought to bring the beast of a ship around. "Loose more speed Danny!" She snapped checking her monitor as she heard the creaking protest of the ship as she made it turn ever so slightly.  
  
"Take it easy." Sam's voice said. "Don't get yourself worked up Kit."  
  
"You had better give me a raise or at least a bloody bonus if I pull this off Tex and make it huge of I don't get us hit."  
  
"In your dreams Kit." Tex snorted. "I'm already paying you more then I want to."  
  
"Oh, no! This isn't in my dreams." She shook her head, "This is nicer then my dreams." The space she needed between the rocks coming into view as she spoke. "There Danny, see." She pointed at the screen.  
  
"What are you going to do?" He asked checking out his own monitors and eyeing up the gap she was pointing to. "We're not going to fit though there."  
  
"Kill as much speed as you can when I give the signal and be ready to kick the power up to full when I say got it? You're not going to have much time."  
  
"I'd like to stay alive Kit." Sam said.  
  
"Then buckle up and enjoy the ride." Kit nodded her head at Danny and swung the ship as hard as she could to the right, letting it slide around through the space till they were facing the way they had come and the back end had fit into the gap like she had hoped but even after it had entered the gap, the whole craft was still drifting sideways.  
  
"We're going to hit that rock Kit!" Danny yelled.  
  
"Not we're not." She said straightening out her controls, her teeth biting into the flesh of her bottom lip as she concentrated. "Give me power Danny."

* * *

Jack sat back in her chair and took a deep breath, her heart was pounding at a terrific rate and she waited for whatever was to come next. For reports of damage or injury. She had pulled a stunt that her drill sergeant at flight school had taught her but it was a stunt that was meant to only be used on smaller ships then _The Aurora_.  
  
Danny looked over at her. He was slightly pale and she was sure that she was the same. She could have obliterated the whole tail end of the ship and lost their cargo but there was still no word. His blue eyes watched her and he shook his head slightly.  
  
"No damage Kit. Not even a scratch on the outer hull. Sill waiting for reports of internal damage." John's voice said breaking the silence  
  
Jack hung her head and her shoulder started to shake with silent laughter. "I need a drink." She said closing her eyes but feeling satisfied.  
  
"I bet you do." Sam said and she sounded a little shaken. "I might even join you in a glass of something stiff."  
  
"And that is why I hired you." Tex said. "I'm sending you the course to our new destination. After you've plotted the course I want to see you all in the conference room and we can talk about the particulars of our destination over a stiff drink."  
  
"Yes sir." Kit said as the coordinates flashed up onto one of her side monitors and she loaded them into the autopilot. "You can go if you want to Danny." She told the co-pilot who was sitting still, just staring at her. He nodded and unbuckled himself and stood up.  
  
"Nice." Was all he said before he left.  
  
"Thanks." She whispered as she put the light filter up again and started putting the ship's autopilot systems back online as she waited for the name of the planet to appear on her monitor but none came. Just numbers and coordinates and she wondered why.  
  
She made sure that she was alone in the cockpit and that the doors were sealed again before singling out the signal to the headset that she had given Riddick. She sat there listening to the static for a minute wondering if she should wait and try and talk to him later.  
  
"Riddick?" She whispered.  
  
Only static.  
  
"Riddick?" She tried again.  
  
Still nothing. She shook her head and gave up. What had she expected anyway? She smiled softly as she opened her headset to the transmissions of the rest of her crewmates. She could hear Sam talking to John about any possible damage to the cargo, the Captain was silent and Danny was talking to one of the three Cs.  
  
_You had better have something strong up their Tex or I'm going to have to go looking for a better watering hole._ She thought as she unbuckled herself from her chair and stood up making sure that everything was as it should before she left for the walk up to the conference room.  
  
Jack was the first to reach the room where the Captain was already standing; it seemed waiting for everyone else to arrive.  
  
"Thought you might be the first to get here." He said as she took a seat.  
  
"It's your ship. You know everything." Jack answered. "What you got to drink?"  
  
"Whatever is in the cabinet." He pointed to a small cupboard behind her. She got up again and poured herself a drink before sitting down again and sipping the amber colored whiskey, enjoying the slight burning sensation as it ran down her throat and hit her stomach, warming her slightly. "That's from earth. Scotland."  
  
"It tastes good."  
  
"There's something you need to know about where we are going before the rest get here."  
  
"Oh?" She turned her full attention to him. "You sound grave."  
  
"You won't like it that's why." He sat down across from her. "I think it's time that the crew found out who you really are Jack."  
  
"Why?" She said eyeing him wearily. Jack didn't like where this conversation was heading already. "Have I done something? I mean I just got your ass out of a mess."  
  
"I'm not saying you didn't Jack, listen to me." It came out more then an order then a request.  
  
"Yes sir." Jack said instinctively.  
  
"We're heading to a planet to pick up a few scientists. But it's not just any planet we're going to." Jack paled as she looked at him wide eyed knowing what he was going to say before he said it. "It's the planet that you crashed on seven years ago. They've been digging around the crash site for a while now and have finished their experiments for now and..."  
  
"I'm not going." She said shaking her head and standing up abruptly. "We cannot take this ship to that place. You wanna know how many people died down there. It was dark and the creatures could see us but we couldn't see them. We could only hear them." She took a deep breath through clenched teeth and looked at him wide-eyed and afraid. "They picked us off one by one," She was nearly yelling. "You don't have to live with the nightmares; I can hear them, see them..."  
  
"Calm down Jack. This is routine. We'll pick them up and be outa there in four hours."  
  
"Nothing about that place is routine sir." She snapped. "And don't you dare tell me to calm down. You have no right to. You weren't there!"  
  
"I am your captain Jack. I have every right to. Sit down for a minute and shut up." He stood up and planted his hands on the table and stared her down. "I agree with you that that place is dangerous but you said that an eclipse happens only once every 22 years. You also said that those creatures didn't come out into the light."  
  
"They don't but you have to careful not to go into the dark where they are." She sat down and looked at him. "Or don't you believe me just like those stupid crash investigators? Do you think I made it all up because I thought Riddick was some kind of god and to cover up the fact he killed those people I made up the monsters that haunt me and hunt me in my sleep?"  
  
"I didn't say that I didn't believe you. Jack." He said as the others walked into the room.  
  
"Jack?" John asked sitting down.  
  
"Short for Jackie." Jack answered him as Sam sat down on her right and touched her arm, her brow furrowed in concern as she saw the look of pained fear on her friends face.  
  
"You alright Kit?" She asked.  
  
"No." Jack said shortly. She took a deep breath and stood up, downing the whiskey in her glass and trying to stop her hands from shaking.  
  
"Would you like to tell them or should I?" Captain Manor asked. 


	4. Revelations

Hello all and welcome to chapter 4. It didn't take as long as i thought to get all done up and ready to go out there. Thank you all for your reviews. I like reading them and am thinking about putting this story up to an R rating becuase of the language. Tell me what you think abou that too.

Happy reading.

Kayla

Chapter 4: Revelations.  
  
"Seven years ago there was a crash on a planet with three suns. It was a passenger ship that crashed and only a few people survived the actual nosedive. I was one of them, maybe fortunately, maybe not, I haven't decided yet. My name is Jackie but ever since then people have called me Jack." Jack started talking. It was easy to do if she kept her back to them and her voice even. "I hid the fact that I was a girl from them. Basically, I was a late bloomer, not that I've bloomed into much, but I thought I was safer with everyone thinking that I was a boy instead of a girl.  
  
"Anyway, every twenty-two years there is an eclipse on that particular planet and the whole planet is plunged into complete darkness for gods knows how long. I mean, you couldn't even see your hand even if it was just inches away from your eyes. We were lucky enough to crash there a day or so before eclipse. The thing that was strange, is before that eclipse takes place, there is no nighttime or darkness, the only darkness is under the ground or man made.  
  
"But when the lights went out the creatures came out to play. Except they were hunting us, the only real weapon we had against them was light and there wasn't enough of that and people died. Only three of us made it off that planet alive, Imam, Riddick and myself."  
  
"Riddick?" Sam interrupted, the name was practically spat out of her mouth but then Jack was already sure that she was clear on what Sam's feelings on Riddick were.  
  
"Yeah Sam. Richard B. Riddick. Convicted murderer and escaped prisoner, only he didn't kill any of us, he didn't even touch us." She paused for a moment and pulled her thoughts together again. This being honest thing wasn't as easy as she would like it to be, not when people already had their own opinions on everything before she had even gotten started. "Alright, that's a lie of sorts. He and Johns got into a few fights and in the end Riddick did kinda lead him to his death but the point was that by getting him killed, he saved me. Johns was going to kill me or try and get Riddick to or something like that. Riddick and I spoke about it once and it wasn't exactly a nice conversation.  
  
"In fact Riddick saved my life a couple of times while we were stuck on that planet. He was the only one that could see in the dark." She paused again and turned around to look at her crewmates, almost pleadingly but not quite. She wanted them to understand but she didn't want them to feel sorry for her or pity her and she didn't want them to hate Riddick either. "I didn't have anywhere to go afterward but Imam and I spread the rumours of Riddick's death down on that planet. We said that Johns had killed him. The stupid investigators didn't believe our version of the events but were happy enough when Imam said that he'd take me on as his charge but that didn't last long, maybe eight months, probably a bit less..."

()

"Riddick? Where's Imam?" Nearly sixteen-year-old Jack walked into the main living area of the darkened flat that she was living in with the holy man and the convicted killer a frown on her face. She had gone into Imam's room only to find the space empty and a note on which was scribbled words she didn't understand in Arabic.  
  
"He left." Riddick said coldly, looking at her out of his silvery eyes and making a shiver run up and down her spine. "He couldn't deal anymore. Not everyone can deal all the time kid."  
  
"What about me? You? Us? Didn't he care?" She looked at him, blank faced and feeling slightly frightened, she had had people die on her before, but no one had ever walked out intentionally. "He told them that he was going to be my guardian. He told me, he wouldn't leave me."  
  
"Never said he didn't care. Just said he couldn't deal." Riddick shrugged. "He probably figured that if he left you I wouldn't."  
  
"What the hell does that mean? Are you leaving too?" Her brow creased with worry and she bit her lip. The one thing she wanted more then anything was not to be alone again.  
  
"We are leaving tonight." He answered.

()

"We moved around a lot. Riddick more or less kept both of us alive and safe. He taught me how to fight and use weapons and most of the time got me so exhausted that by the time night came and the darkness with it I was too tired to dream and because he could see in the dark I wasn't afraid."

()

"I don't like blades." Jack looked at the hand made shiv that he had handed her.  
  
"They don't make the same noise as guns and blasters. They're easier to conceal, less conspicuous." He had said simply and she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before opening them again to find him watching her intently, waiting to see what she would do. "You have to learn to protect yourself. You can't expect me to follow you around and save your ass all the time kid."  
  
"I don't." She whispered adjusting her grip till she was holding the weapon like he held his.  
  
"Are you afraid Jack?"  
  
"No." She answered but it was a lie, part of her was very afraid.  
  
A lone man jumped through the door and into the darkened room. Unfortunately for her, she was right in front of the door and Riddick was somewhere to one side or another and wasn't making a sound, not that she expected him to, he could move without sound if he wanted to. He looked at her and then the blade in her hand and leered at her like she was some piece of meat. It was a look that later in life she would get used to.  
  
"I'd put the weapon down if I were you kid." The man said. "I'm not out to get you but I have a feeling that you know where I can find Richard Riddick."  
  
"What if I can't tell you anything?" Jack gripped the blade tighter then before, she was feeling defiant and afraid and she had no idea at that moment where Riddick had disappeared to or if he was going to do anything beside split. After all, he had said that she had to learn to save her own ass and not expect him to do it all the time.  
  
"I can't leave you alive to warn him can I?" He pulled a small blaster out and held it in her face. She squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath to steady her nerves. Her mind flying around what to say and not coming to a focused conclusion.  
  
"I don't know where Riddick is." She answered half truthfully and opened her eyes to see two bright eyes and Riddick's outline behind the man.  
  
Riddick stabbed him in the back and he dropped the weapon, recognition dawning on him as Riddick pulled his head back by his hair and whispered something in his ear. Both of the men's eyes were on her as he said whatever he had to say. It unnerved her and sent ice running through her veins freezing her to the spot, her muscles unresponsive.  
  
Jack forced herself to watch as he drew his blade across the stranger's neck. Bright, red blood bubbled through the gaping tare in his throat as Riddick let him fall to the floor, as good as dead. She gulped and started to tremble slightly as she watched the blood pool around his head and his body make weird twitching movements. As cool as ice Riddick bent over and wiped his shiv clean on the dead stranger's clothing, giving her a sort of smile as he did so, seemingly unaffected by the whole thing.  
  
She dropped the weapon she was holding and ran outside of their darkened home to be violently sick outside on the balcony. When Riddick joined her, she was sitting with her back against the building wall and her knees pulled up to her chest. She was shaking and her arms were wrapped tightly around her limbs in a vain attempt to stop the trembling, her eyes closed against the sunlight but still she could see the prone figure that lay dead in the room behind her.  
  
"When they're threatening to kill you, they can't be thoughts of as human. It's called servile Jack." He said, his dark, welding goggles pulled down over his light sensitive eyes. "It's either them or you."  
  
"I've never seen someone killed before." He raised an eyebrow as she stumbled over her words. "I mean, not by another person, I mean, not like that." She swallowed hard as he handed her a bottle of water. She took a mouthful that she spat out over the balcony, thankful to get rid of some of the vomit taste in her mouth. She could only imagine what he was thinking of her at that moment, some chicken kid, couldn't even cope with a little bit of blood and death.  
  
"Why didn't you say anything to him?"  
  
"I didn't know where you had gone and if I had told him anything, he would have wasted me anyway or if he hadn't, you would have." She shrugged.

()

"What about Demedia?" John was frowning.  
  
"I didn't lie about that. I was there and I did leave with a shipment of diamonds. Only I was the stupid kid that got Riddick killed in that stupid war." She chose to leave out the fact that she had recently found out that he was alive and the fact that he was hidden somewhere aboard _The Aurora_. That information would have caused a manhunt and she wasn't about to get Riddick caught with a Merc on board wanting to take him back to Slam City.

()

One minute he was there, the next he was gone. She had been right behind him, she was sure of it, more then sure of it, she had been positive. A bullet whizzed over her head splitting the rock inches above her head and dust hit her in the face. Jack hit the deck as quickly as she could and crawled behind a piece of fragmented rock wall. Only seconds ago she could have reached to her right and touched him and then he was gone, just gone, disappeared, like he hadn't been there in the first place.  
  
She squeezed her eyes shut tight and took a couple of deep breaths before peering out and seeing just how many people had guns trained on her position. Another bullet bounced off the rock and another one left a light, burning graze across her cheek before she was able to pull herself back behind the rock and to her relative point of safety.  
  
_Oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God_. Ran through her head as she tried to think her way out of the situation. _What would Riddick do?_ She asked herself and let out a low sarcastic laugh when the answer sprung from her lips. "Wouldn't get left behind in the first place."  
  
There were a number of bullets fired in rapid succession and she was joined by the one person she hadn't expected to see in the first place, Riddick. "What the heck did you think you were doing?" He growled.  
  
"Riddick," Was all she had time to say before she had been pulled to her feet and they were running through the sandy dirt, bullets flying around them, Riddick's hand gripping her upper arm so tightly she could feel the blood flow to her fingers being cut off but still they ran and then she fell, her body twisting because of his hold and her face hitting the ground.  
  
He barely broke stride as he picked her up by her belt and dragged her to her feet but it seemed that the minute she had caught her balance and was running again, he was on the ground, one sharp crack from a gun echoing in her ears.  
  
"Come on Riddick!" She yelled as she grabbed his arm and tried in vain to pull the much heavier man to his feet.  
  
"Get your damned ass off this fucking planet!" He yelled jerking his arm out of her grasp as another bullet hit the ground nearby sending dust flying into the air and her face. "There's no fucking way I'm going to let you die saving my fucking ass." He said the last line through clenched teeth as the second bullet hit.

()

She squeezed her eyes shut, a single tear escaping the bars of her eyelashes and slid down her pale cheek as she heard again in her mind those two shots echo around her. "So now, you all know who I really am." Jack shrugged. "The Captain thought it best that you knew, because we're going back to the planet I was almost killed on as a kid. He's taking us to hell."  
  
"We're what?" Sam looked at the Tex Manor who was sitting a frown on his face. "That could be a security nightmare sir."  
  
"Well, it's safe to say that I'm not going. I'm quitting." Jack shook her head. "I would advise the rest of you to decide how much you value your lives and then decide for yourselves what you're going to do. I've made my choice; you all have to make yours."  
  
"Danny can't land this baby on that planet." John said shaking his head. "Danny'll rip this thing a part. Kit, I mean, Jackie or Jack, I mean her," He resorted to pointing at Jack. "We need her to."  
  
"Just call me Kit. I'm not Jack to you." She snapped. "And he's going to have to land this rig because the minute I get my things together, I'm taking _The Chancer_ and leaving this ship. Anyone who wants to join me can. I have six seats free."  
  
"Jack." Tex turned and looked at her. "There is nothing to be afraid of down there. Those things can't hurt you and you'd be keeping this passengers that you're worried about hell of a lot safer then if you left and let an inexperienced pilot land a ship as big as _The Aurora_."  
  
"You will not guilt trip me into staying on this ship. You cannot do that!" Jack's voice was strained. "You cannot make me do this, you can't!"  
  
"No, you're right I can't." Tex looked at her. "You have your own space cruiser, you can leave any time you want to."  
  
"You can't make me stay." She shook her head stubbornly, her jaw clenched. The pressure she was feeling giving her a headache.  
  
"I know I can't. But I'm asking you to stay and land _The Aurora_ on that planet for me."  
  
"You have no idea! None at all. You wouldn't be asking me if you did. I can't do it, I can't!" And with that she turned and left the room and the people in it to stair at the space she had vacated.  
  
Jack was angry, her blood was pounding in her ears, she was angry, her heart was pounding so fast, like a speeding train unable to stop. There was no way in hell that she would go back to that planet and there was no way she would put the rest of the people on _The Aurora_ in that kind of danger. On top of all of that, she was afraid, she had to stop her walk along the corridor at one point and lean against the wall for support. Her knees felt weak and she was trembling, but she forced herself to take a breath and then a step or two before stopping again.  
  
It wasn't like she had anything to stay on the ship for now anyway; her crewmates wouldn't treat her the same way they used to, not now, not after finding out how close she had been to Riddick. There were some things that were universally unacceptable for most people, hiding out and learning from a convicted and escaped murder was one of those many things. Only, it might have been okay, if only she hadn't shown such strong remorse over his death.  
  
Riddick.  
  
If things hadn't changed that much in the past two years then he would be no more eager then she was to go back to that hellish planet where they were nearly killed, where so many others were killed and eaten. Next job, find him and invite him to take her ship and leave with her and hightail it back to safer ground where there were no monsters to kill them in the darkness.  
  
"Riddick!" She hissed over the headsets. "For once answer me Riddick!"  
  
Again there was no answer to her pleas, only static and silence.  
  
Jack let out a low, almost animal, growl and made herself move again, just one step at a time till she was almost jogging along the corridors that led to her room. By the time she reached her own front door sweat was glistening on her brow but her breathing wasn't as ragged as she had expected it to become.  
  
The merc had been there again, the room had been tossed and even though everything was put back in relatively the right places, she could still see the places where he had been a little too hasty. It was a sloppy job and in his line of work that was never a good thing so he had either been scared off or didn't care much. That was the one thing that kept her from thinking it was Riddick, anyway, he still had her picture.  
  
She pulled her black duffle bag off the shelf and opened it before flipping her mattress and slowly and carefully she started removing her small armoury of five weapons total, minus her handgun, from under the bed and packing everything away except a small hand held blade and her handgun, which Riddick seemed to have returned. She picked one of her tank tops out of the her clothes before packing the rest away minus her belt that had the clip on it for her gun holster and then her personal affects were thrown on top.  
  
There were two light knocks on her door and the shuffling of a pair of feet.  
  
"Come!" She snapped.  
  
"Kit?" Sam walked in and watched the younger girl zip up the large bag that was now full.  
  
"What?" Jack asked.  
  
"Would you like me to call you Jack or Kit?" Sam asked closing the door and taking a seat without being invited to but then, that was a Samish sort of thing to do.  
  
"Whatever you feel most comfortable calling me is fine by me." She shrugged.  
  
"I need to know everything that you can tell me about this planet Jack."  
  
"I'm not saying anything more then by setting this beast down on that planet, you're endangering the lives of every single person on this ship and quite frankly, I think that's stupid." Jack strapped the blade to her right thigh and clipped the gun to the belt around her middle. She pulled off her shirt and replacing it with the tank top as she sat down on the bed. "Those beasts are a good fifteen plus feet long, they use echo location to find their prey so even standing still doesn't really work unless someone is running by you. They have razor sharp teeth and extendable claws and wings, they're like birds, they can fly. And there are millions of them, under the surface and anywhere it's dark or shadowy."  
  
She turned her back to her friend and pushed back the strap of her top so that the hammer-headed beast that was tattooed on her shoulder was clearly visible. She pointed to the tattoo on her shoulder. "Just so you can recognise them when you come face to face, so you're in no doubt of what it is that is about to eat you."  
  
"But Captain Manor said they don't come out into the light, that the light hurts them, even kills them."  
  
"They don't but you have to be careful that you don't go into the darkness or the shadow. Two people who serviced the crash were killed by those things before the lights were even turned out."  
  
"I'm sorry Jack." Sam whispered as she watched Jack struggle to gain her composure again. "Believe it or not, I'm sorry that you lost Riddick too. What was he like?"  
  
"Cold. Ice in a human body." Jack stood up and grabbed her bag. "Don't pity me Sam. When you get home, if you get home, you know where I live. Look me up if you still feel like you can deal with who I am. I'm sorry if you can't, but I am who I am if I like it or not."  
  
"One more thing Jack."  
  
"What?" She turned around and looked at the security officer, noticing the frown that crossed her face and the way that her eyebrows were pulled in. Something else was on Sam's mind and Jack wasn't sure she wanted to know what exactly it was.  
  
"The picture that you showed me the other day. The one with you and the man. Was that...I mean, that wasn't..." She closed her eyes and took a breath. "That wasn't Riddick was it?"  
  
"Yeah, it was. He wasn't a father or a brother, wasn't a boyfriend, the closest he could be described as was a teacher, or a protector." Jack looked at her friend. "He never let me down while he was alive. He let me go through some things that maybe a normal guardian wouldn't but I had to learn and he never let anyone touch me or let me get hurt or killed."  
  
"But he was still a murder."  
  
"Yes. And the planet didn't stop him from killing more people but he had changed. He didn't just kill, he only killed when it meant protecting me or himself." She shrugged. "I'm sorry if I've disappointed you Sam."  
  
"You never disappointed me Jack. And I'll look you up when we get home and give you an update on that planet." A ghost of a smile appeared on Jack's lips but it was gone as soon as it had appeared. "One other thing?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"What happened to your neck?" Sam asked, razing her eyebrows slightly.  
  
"I had a run in with an old friend." Jack answered before opening the door. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you and it wouldn't make your job any easier. 


	5. Split!

Chapter 5: Split  
  
"So you really are splitting? That stupid pilot wasn't lying to me after all." James Bradley's voice said from the entrance to her fare sized cruiser.  
  
"What the hell does it look like I'm doing? Taking a stroll around the park?" Jack didn't bother to turn around and look at him.  
  
"You know that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit don't you Jackie?"  
  
"Didn't I tell you not to bother talking to me again merc?"  
  
"Captain Manor told me where this ship is heading." He said ignoring her question. His footsteps on the metal floor of her small craft sounding hollow and though she didn't show it, she didn't want him any closer to her then he already was and technically, even that was far too close. The damned merc made her skin crawl, they all did. "I thought I'd come see you about my offer before leaving myself. If you don't think it's safe down there, then I won't bother taking any chances."  
  
"What?" She turned around and narrowed her eyes. She didn't like his tone and she sure as hell didn't like his suggestion. What the hell did he think she was?  
  
"I'll assume that you're talking about my offer little lady." She stiffened. Little lady wasn't a description she would have given herself "There is plenty of bounty on that man's head to keep the both of us very comfortable for a very long time and you're probably the only one who could really track him effectively." James Bradley was standing right behind her; he even had the gall to have reach out and played with the strands of her hair in her ponytail. "I think we could work well together Jack, very well."  
  
"You seriously thought that I would turn on Riddick? The man that saved my life and taught me how to survive?" She let out a quick 'ha'. "If I ever see you again merc, I'll kill you myself. Get off my ship."  
  
"You're party. Can't say I didn't try." The man shrugged seemingly unaffected by her threat. "You know who I am if you change your mind."  
  
"Get off my ship." She said again through clenched teeth.  
  
"Later little lady. I have a feeling that we might run into each other again some day." James shrugged and then left.  
  
Jack strapped her bag into a locker like compartment before sitting down in the pilot's chair and running a quick systems check. As she sat in her chair watching the screen flash up the names of different systems, she found her own mind wondering through her collections of memories from a very far and distant past. One that she tried not to remember too often. The last thing she wanted was to become bitter on top of nearly insane.  
  
She had lived comfortably before her parents died. They were a middle class couple who loved her and weren't afraid to show her a little affection now and then and she had loved them back. That wasn't to say they had been perfect, they hadn't even been close. Her dad had been a little gruff at times and liked hard spirits a little too much, her mom liked going out with her friends a lot and sometimes she had been left alone while the women giggled at cocktail parties or in back gardens, far from her hearing.  
  
But she had been happy.  
  
Jack had her mother's rich, dark brown hair. Bret used to say it was the color of chocolate and almost as edible too. The idea had made her smile at the time and the thought made her laugh as she sat and thought about the silly comments he used to make in the middle of the night when both of them were awake and unable to sleep, usually after one of her nightmares. He would do all sorts of things to bring a smile to her face and pull her from the terrors in her mind.  
  
Her eyes were the same as her father's, dark green, almost hazel but more green then brown, she had her dad's easily tanned complexion too, her mother's mouth and full lips, her father nose, perfectly straight, her mother's voice and her father's laugh, though, she wasn't sure where she got her wiry frame from. That wasn't to say she was really thin, she was about a hundred and nineteen pounds and five foot seven, but she was fit and her muscles toned but even still, it seemed even with all the strength she had tried so hard to build up, she was no match for Riddick.  
  
It was strange, she mused as she watched another couple of clean systems flash onto her screen, most people looked like one parent more then the other but she didn't favour one over the other. She was just a mix match of them both and a little bit of herself. Come on, she shook her head as she thought about it, her mom had been busty as anything and well, she just fit a B and her dad had been a tall guy but she only hit five foot seven.  
  
"Ever wonder what your life would have been like if they hadn't died?"  
  
It was a question she hadn't asked herself since starting up the engine of her and Riddick's ship and flying off Demedia as fast as she could, sobs in her throat and guilt in the pit of her stomach. It had been the last time that fear had threatened to take over every system in her body.  
  
"Riddick?" She whispered out loud, feeling that guilt rather acutely again. She had a responsibility to give him the opportunity to leave the stupid ship headed to hell if he was in the mind to take it. She owed him that much. But what after? She didn't want him to leave. She didn't want to be on her own again!  
  
"What?" The answer was soft, unexpected and it's owner was standing right behind her. Jack stiffened, his presence suddenly very palatable behind her seat. How long had he been there?  
  
"Sorry." Was the first thing that jumped into her head and out of her mouth, though even she didn't know for what or why she was apologising in the first place. Maybe it was just because she was scared that he could read her thoughts.  
  
"What for?" Ice in a human body. Wasn't that what she had told Sam that Riddick was like? Ice? But there was none of the ice in his voice or on his face as she turned her chair around to look at him.  
  
"Nothing, not really anyway," She shook her head and looked at the metal floor, trying to clear some space in her mind so she could think clearly and form words. "Can we start this little surprise meeting over again?"  
  
"How would you like to start it?" Riddick asked.  
  
"Maybe like two normal people who have happened to meet? Maybe without you sneaking up on me and I'm sure that a hi wouldn't go down too badly." Jack answered pointedly. "You sneak up on me too fucking much Riddick, you always used to and at the moment my nerves are too stretched to deal with it so would you please stop!"  
  
"Hi Jack. How are you? Having a good day?" He said, obviously making his own point. They weren't normal people, having a normal conversation or meeting. She scowled at him and then started laughing the laugh of someone close to loosing it completely. A laugh half way between a laugh and a sob.  
  
"I'm crap. My day sucks ass and I'm leaving _The Aurora_, a ship that I like and a crew that I got on well with, people that I counted as friends." She stopped laughing suddenly and sharply, and then looked straight at him, her eyes cold and wide, and her face pale. "Thanks for asking." The last sentence was said almost aggressively.  
  
"You're leaving?"  
  
"Didn't I fucking say that?" She said, the scowl back on her face.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"What is it with you and your stupid questions? It's either one word or short answers and stupid fucking questions." She snarled.  
  
"Don't get lippy with me Jack."  
  
"I'm not seventeen anymore Riddick and you're not my dad. You never were." She looked away from him, not liking to look at him and see herself reflected through his dark glasses. Jack didn't like what she saw in the reflection staring angrily back at her.  
  
"I never tried to be your father."  
  
"I know that. You never tried to be anything." She retorted. Then made herself soften her tone. "If I turn down the lights will you take off the goggles?"  
  
"If you want me to." He answered.  
  
"I want you to." She nodded and flicked the switch that took out all but the lights farthest away from them, so that she could still see. "Believe it or not, I don't set out to pick a fight. I'm still dealing with a lot of shit. I mean, yesterday I thought you were dead. Do you have any idea how scared I was?"  
  
"I have an idea." He shrugged. "Life happens Jack."  
  
"Yeah, well. I wish it wouldn't."  
  
"You wanna tell me why you're leaving _The Aurora_?"  
  
"Because this ship is headed to picked up a few scientists from THAT planet." She answered, letting her face fall into her hands. What the hell was she thinking crying in front of a dead or rather used to be dead man, a man who was as cold as ice? A man who had taught her how to forget emotion, and here she was crying for the second time in two days. She never cried when he was around before and could hardly believe that she was letting herself now. But she couldn't have stopped the tears even if she had tried.  
  
She was afraid.  
  
"What planet? I can't read minds kid."  
  
"The dark planet with three suns where we were almost killed, where Shazza and Carolyn and the others died." She said. The silent tears turning into silent sobs, which stuck in her throat and made her whole upper body shake with the effort to keep them silent.  
  
"Shit." Was all Riddick had to say to the answer he had been given.  
  
"Yeah, shit, bucket loads of bloody shit." Jack confirmed.  
  
Then strong arms encircled her and lifted her off the seat and onto his lap. She didn't feel like fighting him over it, so she sat there curled up against his chest and cried, her hands clutching handfuls of his black t- shirt for dear life so it seemed and all the while, his strong arms were wrapped around her blocking out the world.  
  
"They can't hurt you Jack." Riddick said softly after the sobbing had stopped and she seemed to have pulled herself together somewhat effectively. "Not on my watch."  
  
"I'm sorry." She said, her voice somewhat muffled because of the way she was sitting.  
  
"Rule One: Don't apologise for things that aren't your fault."  
  
"I have my own rules to live by now." Jack said but still didn't move. She couldn't remember the last time she had been held like that, like she was made of glass, like she was important. She was safe surrounded by his arms and his distinct smell. A smell, which she couldn't believe she had forgotten. After all, they had slept near each other every night they weren't on transports for five years. He would always push the bed up against a windowless, doorless wall and she would get the inside, with her back against the wall while he slept facing the room, his broad back to her.  
  
They had lived in some dodgy areas and some not so dodgy areas, in some pretty close quarters and some spacious ones but it didn't matter where they were he had made her feel safe and made sure that there was always him between her and anything that could come through the door. She had never thought that it was a deliberate action to keep her safe but rather a way to keep her from getting him killed by getting in the way. It was just the way that things had happened.  
  
She forgot things concerning Riddick didn't just happen. He didn't seem to do much that didn't have a point or a purpose. "God, what am I doing? I've got to be going soft. For that matter, what the hell are you doing?" She pushed herself away from him and got to her feet. He just sat and looked at her, not seeming at all phased. "Where did the old Riddick go? You wouldn't have ever done that before."  
  
"Tell me which Riddick you prefer and you got it kid. It's no skin off my back."  
  
"You're making it sound an awful lot like you're going to be sticking around. Don't play with me, please, I've had enough of that so far in this life."  
  
"Sticking around for a while was in the original plan. You don't think I spent time and energy finding you only to make sure you were safe and then leave again did you?"  
  
"Well, if you're not going to spilt on me, you're welcome to stick around. I'm leaving in an hour. I just have to go get clearance." Jack wiped her hands on her black jeans, knowing that her face would look like hell and that a stop off in the bathrooms for a quick dunk in cold water would be on the agenda. "I'll see you then if you want to leave."  
  
"And if I don't?"  
  
"Then stay. It's no skin off my back. I've lived without you this long and successfully." Jack left the spacecraft reeling. You think you knew what to expect from a person and then they went and did something totally unexpected and it left you wondering. What else was new with Riddick and which Riddick did she like better? She didn't know the answers to either question and it left her feeling a little uneasy.  
  
It took her twenty minutes of cold water to stop it looking like she had been crying her eyes out and then it took another five to make her way along the familiar corridors to the main control room that was the Captain's domain.  
  
"Hey Kit."  
  
"Hey John." She gave the young engineer a small smile. She hadn't been expecting to run into John or any of the crew on her way to see Tex; she almost had wanted to slip away with only herself and the captain knowing about it. The rest of the crew knew enough about her as it was, to stop them wanting a lot of contact with her anyway.  
  
John was only her age. Tex Manor seemed to like to bring his crew onboard young and bring them on in their skills. He was a man that seemed to train loyalty into them as well. And all of them were loyal to each other, she would kill for any of them, would take a bullet for them too but there was no way that she could make herself go to that planet. In that particular fight, survival and fear had won out over loyalty and part of her hated herself for it.  
  
"Are you sure you have to quit?" He asked.  
  
"I've got no other choice at the moment John. It's that or my sanity." She shrugged before continuing on, sad that he felt she was letting him down, but there was nothing for it. None of them had had to deal with the creatures on that planet or with the aftermath of haunting nightmares and the fight for survival.  
  
A year and a half she had served aboard _The Aurora_, half a year as co-pilot and a year as pilot. A good year and a half of her life and she would never regret a minute of it. She would miss the old hunk of rust, she realised as she stopped in front of the open door to the control room. Tex was sitting in a chair with his back to her and Sam and Danny were in front of him. He was obviously talking to them about the procedure for the pick up of the scientists.  
  
"Captain Manor?" Jack walked into the room.  
  
"Yes?" He answered as she walked around so that she was facing him.  
  
"Can I make a suggestion?"  
  
"If you would like." He nodded. He didn't look angry, just a little sad.  
  
"Danny couldn't land The Aurora on that planet. You and I and everyone else knows that. He can handle a cruiser, though, like it's an extension of himself and there is another cruiser on this ship besides my own. It would be safer for everyone involved if he just picked the crackpots down there on that."  
  
"She's right you know." Sam said. "Me and Dan could take _The Torc_ down there. That way, there's less chance of anyone being hurt." The security officer shrugged and looked over at Jack and gave her a nod and a smile. Sam had always backed her up and it looked like she was going to continue to do so. Jack gave the older women a thankful smile.  
  
"I'll think about it in more depth later." Tex said with a shrug. "Anything else I can do for you Jack?"  
  
"A couple of things actually sir." Jack sighed. "First off, I'd like to thank you for the opportunities that you've given me, and I'm sorry that I have to leave like this, but really sir, I can't go to that planet, I won't go near it. And I want you to know that if you ever need a pilot for any of your runs that don't include planet hell, well, you know where I live and you know my skills."  
  
"You're a good pilot Jack. Bret was right about you. I'm sorry that you feel you have to go."  
  
"Thank you sir. There are some things in my past that I can't find peace with. I'm sorry too." She smiled sadly at him. "Permission to leave from docking bay four sir?"  
  
"Permission granted." He answered. "Safe flying."  
  
"Thank you sir." She said before leaving.

()  
  
He had never expected that particular turn of events. He thought as he dumped his own bag into a locker compartment onboard Jack's cruiser. But then, there was a lot of things that had happened in the last two days when it came to the girl that he hadn't expected or planned on.  
  
It wasn't that Riddick hadn't expected the girl to get a job; he had, just not a legit job like she had gotten herself. After being around him for so long, he had expected her to loose some of her worry over what was right and what was wrong but in a way he was glad that he hadn't seemed to rub off on her in that way. Only thing was, she sure as hell had rubbed off on him.  
  
Even before the crimes and murders that had landed him in Slam City, when he had been, well, a little more human, he had never had someone else depended on him at any level for survival. Until Jack, he had never had anyone that needed protection or teaching or food and clothing, someone that could only get it from him.  
  
Something like that could change a person, a man. Sometimes it didn't matter how cold you were or how hard you tried to be unfeeling. The minute you started to care, you were doomed. The only problem was he only realised that too late. He should have left Carolyn on that planet in the first place, he would have made life hell of a lot easier for himself if he had but he hadn't. Hindsight was a bitch.  
  
Now, that wasn't to say that he had done a complete one eighty and turned into a law abiding citizen of the free universe or that he was now a giant and well muscled teddy bear but at the same time, he wasn't a heartless, soulless killer any more. Richard B. Riddick had changed and he still wasn't sure if his trip back to humanity was a good thing or a bad thing. He just accepted it; there wasn't much else that he could do.  
  
"So you decided to join me then?" Jack said, leaping up the ramp and hitting the button that would close the hatch and airlock her ship. The girl had an almost feline grace to her as she went about her preparation work. She moved, it seemed without any effort at all.  
  
"For now." He replied taking the main piloting chair and waiting for her to comment. She didn't, she just sat in the co-pilot's chair and buckled up.  
  
"I trust you know what you're doing?" She said.  
  
He didn't answer her just gave her a pointed look so she shrugged and put on her headset.  
  
"_Aurora_, this is _The Chancer_, clamped in docking bay four. Captain Kit O'Donnell, requesting permission to disengage docking clamps and leave _The Aurora_." Jack said clearly.  
  
"_Chancer_, this is Captain Tex Manor of _The Aurora_, proceed with departure." Tex answered as docking bay four depressurised and the doors into open space were opened. The Captain was silent for a moment and then the headset crackled to life again. "I hope you find your peace Jack."


	6. The Past

Hey all, here is chapter 6. Thanks for the reveiws, tell me what you think.

Happy Reading

Kayla

Chapter 6: The Past.  
  
Jack felt useless as she lay on a bed mat behind the pilots chairs, some eighteen hours into their journey home. She had depended on herself for so long that it was weird to have someone else take over like Riddick automatically had. Why she had let him, she still wasn't quite clear with herself on, one of those force of habit things more then likely. But it made her feel useless and at that moment in time, she needed to feel useful. Guilt was eating her up inside.  
  
She rolled over onto her side and clutched her pillow close as she listened to the sounds of _The Chancer _around her. The whirring of the power cells, the purring of the air generator system and the clinking sounds that the artificial gravity initiator made. She trusted those sounds as long as they continued to belong to the items that made them and not whatever was lurking in her head.  
  
Then there were the sounds of Riddick's breathing and her own breathing, both steady and rhythmic. She could feel her heart beating in her chest and the blood pulsing through her veins in steady waves. It was all safe and familiar.  
  
Safe.  
  
To be truly safe would be something that she would love. Not to have to worry about security or Mercs or people finding out who she really was and making trouble for her. That would make her feel pretty safe but that wasn't an option in the life she had been given. Last time she had been with Riddick she had been as safe as was possible under the circumstances but it was only the last time she had been with her parents that she had felt that nothing could hurt her in the whole universe.  
  
She took a deep breath and fingered the thick fabric of her blanket.  
  
With all the characters that she had played since she was fifteen, she was beginning to wonder who she really was. Was she really Jack or was Jack just another one of her aliases? No, that was only insanity talking and she knew it. She was Jack that was the only thing about her that seemed truly real. Only, how close was she to tipping over the edge this time?  
  
"You need a hand?" Jack asked.  
  
"Nope. Get some rest kid." Riddick answered.  
  
"Don't call me that. I'm not a kid anymore." And that was the end of their exchange. Not much in the way of stimulating conversation.  
  
It wasn't like they had had deep and meaningful conversation before, but then she had been used to it. Over the past two years of her life, she had found her voice and with it an enjoyment of conversation. The silence was something that would take some getting used to again. At least she wasn't alone. Wasn't alone but was feeling guilty as heck.  
  
Rest was something that she knew would not come on her cruiser that night. There were no lights on and though she knew that Riddick needed it that way to see and work efficiently but it didn't help her at all. She couldn't get used to darkness no matter how hard she tried. Already the noises were coming out. The clinking of the gravity initiator turned into the sounds of their claws, the whirring the beat of their wings and even a screech could be heard.  
  
Jack clenched her teeth and her fists and forced herself to lay still and concentrate on the steady in and out of her breathing, forcing herself not to listen but to focus on other things. But the sounds were in her mind and she couldn't seem to escape the things of her mind no matter how hard she tried.  
  
She wasn't sure how long she laid there until she was so tense she felt like screaming but she didn't let herself scream or make a noise, she just got to her feet. Standing up didn't make her feel much better though, just edgy. She took her butterfly knife from its holder at her thigh and opened it, testing the metal's edge for sharpness. She ran her finger along the flat of the five-inch blade and closed her eyes. She closed it and put it back before stooping and picking up her blanket.  
  
Jack wrapped the blanket tightly around her shoulders to keep out the chill she was feeling and sat down in the co-pilot's chair, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping the blanket around them too. She stared out at the stars, wrapped up in a cocoon of warmth and thought.  
  
"I grew up on Madalus Five." She said speaking suddenly and unexpectedly. "For as long as I could remember my dad and I would go to this hill behind our house on the 18th of August every year.  
  
"It was the one day a year that dad was guaranteed to be all mine, it was our day and no one and nothing ever intruded on it. We would get up early and go to the Dome in the morning and watch the Tiberis Tigers beat the Lameir Wolves, eat dinner out and then go to the hill.  
  
"We used to lay on our backs and watch the stars. Sometimes, we would lay there and try and count them, sometimes we would talk and sometimes, he would tell me stories of when he was a kid living on earth with his parents and sometimes we would just lay there and be silent, listening to each other's breathing." Her voice tapered away as she looked at the stars. "As a kid I didn't realised just how many of them there really were."  
  
"You never talked about your father before."  
  
"I didn't know what to say before, he was dead. They were both dead." Jack shrugged. "My mom was convinced that she was pregnant with a boy when she got pregnant with me. She was almost positive and my dad totally believed her. I think dad's always want boys anyway, even if there are happy with their daughters, they just want a boy so they can turn them into mini versions of themselves. Or at least that's what I figure.  
  
"So anyway, they decorated my room, picked out baby clothes and even picked out my name. Lucky me was to be named after my dad's father, Jack. I dunno why they do that, name a kid after a relative, doesn't make sense. I kinda surprised them I guess, when I turned out to be a girl. My mom didn't quite know what to do so called me Jackie. I think it was so she didn't disappoint my grandfather."  
  
"Why are you digging up the past now Jack?"  
  
"To try and find some peace with it I guess. I've never really dealt with my past before, not with people dieing on me or leaving my all over the place." She shrugged. "I figure if I can deal with the easy stuff, like my parents, then maybe I'll be able to deal with that planet."  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"Rule One: Don't apologise for things that aren't your fault." She quoted his rule of earlier.  
  
"Fare enough." He conceded.  
  
"I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me, least of all you Riddick." She shook her head. "Why didn't you do the smart thing and leave like Imam did? I know that I only ever slowed you down." She asked carefully, not sure if she would be given a straightforward answer or another one of his cryptic grunts.  
  
"One of us had to make sure that you lived." Riddick answered. "You might have grown up a little more normal with Imam but I guess I was better equipped to protect you. Mind it was mainly me that put your life in danger but you seemed to deal with it all right."  
  
"I'm good at dealing with things. I always have been." She shrugged. "And some of those places weren't so bad as long as you didn't go outside." He snorted which she figured was as close as she would get to a real laugh. Well, it was a start.  
  
"I thought you would have kicked up and left the minute you could, to get away from those places."  
  
"And be alone, I think not." It was her turn to snort. "Those kinds of places grow on you. All the violence and the thugs..." She was smiling as she looked over at him but he wasn't smiling. He didn't seem to think it was as funny as she did. "Really, it wasn't that bad Riddick."  
  
"I should have never taken you to those places but it was where I belonged. I could keep you safe if I understood the rules, and I understand the rules of cutthroats and thieves."  
  
"Oh." She hung her head slightly. "I thought I was just tagging along, that you felt obligated to let me stay if I kept up. I always thought that."  
  
"You kept up most of the time and never complained but there was more to it then that." He didn't seem all that comfortable talking about it to her anymore. She had either joked too much or pushed too much and the last thing she wanted was for him not to talk to her at all. "Try and get some sleep Jack. I don't want you landing this thing on zero sleep."  
  
"Sleeping isn't that easy." She answered. "I'll be fine when it comes to landing, I might just crash for twelve hours when I get home." Home, she didn't even feel comfortable thinking about it. Not knowing where her friends were headed, back to that planet and none of them knew, none of them understood.  
  
"And how do you propose to do that?"  
  
She pulled a four inch long clear bottle out of one of the pockets of her vest jacket that was wrapped around the back of the chair. The liquid was red "Caffeine in a bottle." She shrugged. "On this thing, I have about eight hours of totally awareness, after that I crash hard but the sleep after this stuff is dreamless. It's not only caffeine, there's some other junk in there and it turns the whites of your eyes red but it works well. I get a couple of bottles off Joe before a go on flights."  
  
"Learned a few tricks of the trade I see."  
  
"No." She shook her head. "I've stayed sane. There's a difference."

* * *

James Bradley was a self-professed bastard and it didn't bother him in the least. He was nearing thirty-one and had already had two wives both that divorced him because of his job but surprisingly that didn't bother him in the least either, he was happy enough with who and what he was even if no one else seemed to be. He was a single-minded merc and his job was his life, if his wives couldn't deal with that then that wasn't his problem. Once he had a trail it was hard to throw him off it and he wouldn't leave the trail until he had collected his prize.  
  
James Bradley loved the hunt and he had it in his head to hunt one of the known universe's most notorious killers and escaped convicts, Richard B. Riddick. He had never had a trail blow so hot and cold on him at the same time. Even the man's name was a taunt and a jeer challenging the skills that he had worked so hard to prefect.  
  
The girl had been something of an unexpected part of his hunt and not an unpleasant one for all that she was hiding and not forth coming with the information that she held. He had found out everything that he could about her past but had expected to find a shell of a human being with a hatred for Riddick. He hadn't expected her to be beautiful or smart and he hadn't expected her to protect Riddick so venomously.  
  
The girl had had a tough life, or at least a tough few years, her parents dieing, the crash, the night on the dark planet and living with Riddick. There was something haunted about the girl's features. It had been stronger then ever the last time he had been to see her onboard her own little cruiser. He had noted it then, but he had seen it before.  
  
He had seen the blade and the gun she carried at her side and knew that Riddick must have taught her a thing or two about the fight but he was sure that there would be paranoia there too. The slam did that to people and though she had never been there, Riddick had and young minds could be very impressionable. Just the way that she had carried herself proved that Riddick had had a hand in her skittishness, though she was good at controlling it. The convict had had his hands in that and in her cold, hard exterior; he had had a hand in ruining a good kid.  
  
Yes, James Bradley nodded, they would have worked well together, he was sure of it and if it had worked out, then one day, perhaps his charms might have worked on her and their relationship turn to something a little more then just work. At least he was sure that she wasn't into girls. Her string of relationships proved that, but the mercs had learned that going after her through them wasn't a good idea. That stupid guy had gotten himself killed because he came between her and a Merc.  
  
She seemed to have a toxic like effect on the men that she came into contact with; only the holy man had escaped that effect. Riddick now, seemed willing to risk his own life for her and the Robson guy had willingly thrown himself into a dangerous position to keep her alive. The merc that had killed him and turned up dead a few days later, but it was Kelly Marks, the dead man's sister who was said to have killed him and she hadn't been heard of since the ship that had been carrying her to a Slam was hijacked, not even her husband seemed to know where she was.  
  
He chuckled to himself as he thought about her and shook his head. Who was he trying to kid? That girl would never be more then five foot seven inches of pure trouble in an attractive body and yet, she had to be the key to finding Riddick. Only it wouldn't be as simple as that, he had a feeling that she would fight as fiercely for Riddick as Riddick would for her.  
  
Jackie had admitted herself that Riddick had invested too much in her to let her die and that would more then likely mean that he had invested too much to stay away from her forever, even if he thought he could, James Bradley was sure that he wouldn't. But the question was when? Riddick was probably already a shadow in her life that didn't belong but that she didn't know was there, making sure that she kept the life that he had saved, perhaps one too many times.  
  
How long would it take the girl to realise that he wasn't dead and how long would it be before Riddick made a mistake for her? His bet was sooner rather then later and until he did, James Bradley mused, he might as well do a little more of a background check into the girl and see if he could find out the connection between all of her aliases. There was still something that didn't fit about her and he wanted to know what.  
  
He was not a man made to be idle and wait for the information he wanted to fall into his lap. He made sure that he kept himself active and his mind sharp while he lay in wait and so far his tactics had been highly successful, after all, he had spent sometime in the company of some of the best mercs around, including the man who was always chasing Riddick before the girl had come into play, a man called William J. Johns and while Riddick seemed to have been too much for him, James Bradley was the better hunter.  
  
Eight convicts so far and Riddick would be his crowning glory.

* * *

"Have you just been running over the past two years?" Jack asked as she leaned her head back against the headrest of her chair, the bright light of the stars they were passing conflicting with the cold black of deep space. It was a contrast that she didn't particularly enjoy thinking about but it didn't mean that she didn't appreciate the beauty in the stars. It just meant that there was a contrast.  
  
"Been laying low and keeping my ear out for any sign of you." He answered as she shifted restlessly in her chair and turned her green eyes on him. If she hadn't known that being watched unsettled him, she would have been watching him the whole time that she had been talking before. She would have been watching to see what had changed in his features, taking them in and trying to figure out what had happened for herself.  
  
Her eyes darted over his tall and well-muscled body, the strong shoulders and arms leading to hands that could kill a person just by squeezing. He was still clean-shaven, his face and his head, like he had always kept them. His eyes still shone like pools of molten silver and his jaw was set in stone like she always remembered it being.  
  
She looked away again, knowing that he would only tolerate her intent gaze for so long. She looked down at the floor. She had missed him.  
  
"Can we turn up the lights a bit?" She asked tentatively, but her voice sounded small and a little skittish even to her own ears and her eyes darted from the spot she had been staring at to him and then to a darkened corner. The dark made her nervous. It would take a while before she got used to having Riddick around and it would take her time to relax.  
  
"Feeling nervous?" Riddick looked at her out of the corner of his eye and the muscles of his jaw worked a little.  
  
"Don't make me beg Riddick." She snapped.  
  
"If you want them on." He nodded and pulled down his dark goggles as a couple of lights flared on over head, bathing her in light and calming the flutter of nervous energy in her muscles. "When did this obsession in light happen?"  
  
"When there were no eyes that could see in the dark." She answered and he made a small snorting noise. "It's Bret's fault really. He used light as a weapon against my nightmares. I used to wake up screaming, names, or just a single endless pitch. It didn't make them go away completely but it kept them at bay, if I happened to fall into a deep sleep though, we were screwed. But most of the time we were alright, the light kept my sleep light. Only it kept his sleep light too."  
  
"Bret?"  
  
"Yeah." A half smile crept across her face. "I took to sleeping on the couch after a while, the living room stayed light and didn't bother anyone. The only problem with the light was that he couldn't sleep well with it on, it was the only way I got any sleep unless it was drug induced, tried that for a while but he didn't like the side effects."  
  
"Side effects?"  
  
"Giant mood swings, happiness, depression, hysteria." She shrugged. "I didn't particularly like me then either. I'd start off next to him but I'd only be there until he was asleep, then I'd transfer myself to the couch. It meant that he slept well but it drove him crazy." She shook her head. "I never did figure out why, but for some reason, he liked to be near me."  
  
"Sounds like he was alright." Riddick said but he didn't sound convinced.  
  
"He was more then alright, though, I'm not sure if you would have gotten on with him all that well."  
  
"What does that mean?" He moved sharply that time and she wondered why.  
  
"Don't look at me like that you big idiot. Bret was the opposite of you; I mean he was a big guy, an athlete, armature rock climber, actually he was pretty strong. But he was the kind of guy that got rid of trouble by talking. He was gentle and sweet, went out of his way to make stupid gestures that meant nothing but everything at the same time. Maybe that's why I liked him." She shrugged. "He would have been too full of the good part of the human race for you."  
  
"What are you saying about yourself Jack?"  
  
"My humanity has been slightly twisted over time. I'm a survivor Riddick." She shrugged. "I've done a number of things in the last two years that I'm not exactly proud of but that I wouldn't hesitate to do again."  
  
"And why do I get the feeling that that's my fault somehow?"  
  
"Because, it was you that taught me to survive."  
  
"You alright?" He asked as Jack stood up abruptly and walked to the back of the ship.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine." Jack answered with a shrug as she started pacing. Thinking about Bret made her feel guilty again. Guilty about the way he died, guilty for not telling him who she really was, guilty for leaving _The Aurora_. "Riddick?" Jack voice was small, a little shaky as she stood up and walked back to the front of the ship a couple of hours later and took her seat. She gave him a long look from where she sat in the chair next to him.  
  
"What?" He answered a frown creasing his brow.  
  
"I can't do this." She shook her head, looking at her hands which were sitting in her lap. She toyed with her fingers for a moment or two trying to find the right words and then just let herself explode with exactly what she was thinking. "Danny can't fucking land _The Aurora_ but I can. I can't do this. What the hell am I made out of anyway? Chicken shit?"  
  
"You gotta make more sense then that Jack."  
  
"Turn this ship around. I need to go back to The Aurora. I need to make sure that no one else gets killed down on that fucking planet. I can't find out that something has happened to those people just because I chose not to stick around which mean I ha..." Her voice broke and she closed her yes and took a couple of deep breaths, trying to draw herself away from her fear. "Which means," She repeated slowly. "I have to go back to that damned planet." 


	7. Turning Around

Drop me a review if you feel like it.

Kayla

Chapter 7: Turning Around.  
  
"What's with the sudden change of heart Jack?" Riddick asked, the look on his face stony.  
  
"I am the pilot of _The Aurora_. There are passengers aboard that ship that don't deserve to go through the shit that I went through. I can make sure that we get on and off that planet safely and as I remember it, that's half the battle." Jack answered and swallowed hard. "I'm scared shitless Riddick but I know I have to do this."  
  
"Are you fucking crazy girl? I thought I spent five years teaching you how to survive, how not to throw your life away. I thought I taught you how to be smart!"  
  
"You did but someone else taught me the value of a person's life." Jack argued back. "You saved me when you shouldn't have, when your own survival was being put at risk. This is the same idea, these people know shit about what's on that planet but I do and maybe I can save them from getting killed or done in by those creatures."  
  
"Me saving you was an entirely different story Jack." He growled.  
  
"Was it hell!" She snarled right back, not about to let him intimidate her. "Until I'm back aboard _The Aurora, The Chancer_ is still my ship, after that, you can take her and leave if you want but I have to do this, wither you understand or not. I have to!"  
  
"I saved your fucking ass Jack, because I knew you, because I thought you were smart, thought that you would learn."  
  
"Well sorry I'm such a fucking disappointment." She stood up and made to leave him alone at the front of _The Chancer_ until she had figured out some way of making him turn around her ship that didn't involve anyone getting hurt or killed. His hand snaked out and caught her wrist and gave it a sharp tug that landed her sitting on his lap looking into his flaring silver eyes.  
  
"You couldn't get off that ship fast enough." He said in a low voice that frightened her. It was the same voice she remembered him using when he was threatening the people that tried to hurt her or stop them from leaving a planet.  
  
"I was scared," She whispered. "The fear and the survival part of me took over and I was stupid enough to let it. I can't let those people die because of a fucking piloting error and I can't let those scientists thinking their all smart and shit take one of those things off that planet."  
  
"That's Captain Manor's business not yours."  
  
"It is my business. Manor doesn't know what those things look like; he doesn't know what the hell they can do to a person. What if those stupid fucks thing that it would be cool to take a breeding pair off there. Any planet with a night and a day will be screwed because once those things figure out how to get free there will be hell."  
  
"Whose to say that you could stop something from happening to that ship or stop those scientists from taking those things off that planet. _The Aurora_ isn't your ship."  
  
"I know I might not be able to do anything but that crew are my friends and I owe it to them to stay and do my best to keep anything stupid from happening when it comes to piloting and them getting killed over it." She shrugged. "I don't expect you to come with us, like I said, I'll give you _The Chancer_ after you drop me off aboard _The Aurora_."  
  
"You don't expect me to stick around?"  
  
"That's what I said didn't I? God Riddick you can be so fucking thick sometimes!" She shook her head exasperated.  
  
Neither of them said anything for a moment or two. Jack was acutely aware that she was sitting on his lap with one of his arms around her waist, his hand on her side holding her in place and aware that he hadn't as of yet actually let go of her wrist. He had a look on his face that seemed to scream murder but the last thing she wanted at that moment was to be scared of him.  
  
"What the hell do you want me to do Jack?" He said finally looking at her and making her look at him. She could feel his fingers digging into the flesh of her side slightly but she didn't let herself wince. He knew he had power over her but damn if she was going to show the fact that he was hurting her. She wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of her recognition of the fact that he had the upper hand.  
  
"Honestly?" She asked giving him a look that told him she'd tell him exactly what she was thinking if it was what he really wanted. He nodded. "I want you to come with me aboard The Aurora. I want you to make sure I stay sane and alive. I wanna feel safe because I can't do this on my own. That is what I honestly want from you Riddick."  
  
"And I make you feel safe?" Jack nodded and took her lower lip between her teeth.  
  
They sat in silence again. Jack refused to look at him but she knew that he was looking at her. She couldn't force him to come with her but she wanted him to. The idea of loosing him again so soon after she had found out that he wasn't dead almost was enough to make her burst into tears again. But she would never be able to live with herself if something happened to anyone on _The Aurora_ that she that she could have possibly prevented. She nervously crewed on one of her nails.  
  
"Stop that." He said.  
  
"Sorry." She answered and they went back to their silence.  
  
"Alright." He said simply as he released her and she stood up again.  
  
"Alright?" She looked at him as she sat down in the chair next to his.  
  
"You had better start thinking up something to tell your Captain Jack because when we get back to that ship, I'm not going to let you out of my sight."

* * *

Candace Dalton sat in the room she shared with her mother on board _The Aurora_ and played with the carpet with her toes while her mother spoke to one of the hostesses, Carla or Carly or Cara or something like that anyway. To be honest, the conversation didn't interest the sixteen year old in the least and she was getting more and more bored by the second.  
  
Candy had only been on the ship for five days but already she had had enough of it. She was sporting bruises now, not only from her mother's hand but also from when she had been thrown out of bed by the emergency manoeuvres that had stopped the ship from crashing and everyone being killed. She was a girl that hated not being in control and suddenly she had no control of her life at all and she was hurting.  
  
She had been planet hopping with her mother for over a month and all because her stupid ass father had turned up early from work one night to witness her mother laying into her, he had pulled her out of her mother's grasp and turned the tables, instead of her mother beating the tar out of her, her father was beating the tar out of her mother. Her mom had packed them up quicker then Candy had ever thought possible and made her leave in the middle of the night when her father wouldn't be able to stop them. Stupid fool, she would still have been with him if he hadn't walked in. She was used to her mother's foul tempers and could take the beatings alright but she missed her father.  
  
"I got into hosting around you daughter's age. It's certainly a good profession to start in as soon as parents are willing to let their kids go. If she's good, she might even be able to get herself a job working for Captain Manor." The C named women was saying, a smile plastered in red lipstick across her highly made up face and her mother was grinning like a Cheshire, drinking it all in like she thought it was the most wonderful idea in the universe.  
  
_"Gods have mercy on my soul."_ She thought. It wasn't as if she didn't know that her mother would get rid of her sooner rather then later but she hadn't been expecting to be sold into a job that she had no interest in at all. The only reason her mother had even taken her with her was so that her father couldn't have her around anymore, because that was the one way that her mother knew to wound the man that didn't directly involve killing or maiming him.  
  
Candace Dalton was good with her hands, a practical person like her father had been and she was smart too with a good GPA and learned quickly if the subject was one that caught her interest. Hosting however was not one of the professions that she was interested and she would kick up hell of a fuss before she ever accepted that as her fate. Didn't her mother know the other less spoken about jobs that Hostesses were known to take up on ships? Half the time the damned Captains didn't even know about the little side business that the women had going and that was a business that Candy wanted nothing to do with.  
  
The teenager rolled her eyes as her skinny mother jabbered on and on and on about her skills like the owner of a race horse that she was trying to sell and Candace even caught the hostess looking over her like she was a piece of meat or horseflesh that was about to be sold. That kind of look made her sudden and she was sure that if she could avoid it, she would try not to get a job working with that particular women. She was in no doubt of what a women like that would try and make her do.  
  
"How are her people skills?" The hostess asked and Candy looked at her coldly out of her piercing blue eyes.  
  
"Why don't you ask me the fucking questions? You wanna know how my people skills are bitch or what my GPA is then ask me got it? I won't be talked about like I'm not in the fucking room you stupid wench." Candace spat out and the two women looked at her. Her mother's face went dark and she only just got out of the way in time to miss being back handed across her already sore face. She had lost her rag again and she knew she was in some deep shit the minute that her mother and her were alone again. She was going to get leathered.  
  
"Sounds like she'd be better up with the main crew." The hostess narrowed her eyes but Candy didn't stop glaring back at her. She wasn't about to let the stupid slut intimidate her; she wouldn't let her know that she was scared. Hell, the only problem was that she was scared; her mother didn't seem to mind the idea of selling her off. It would just be another twist of the invisible knife in her father's chest. "You should hear the mouths on Jack and Sam, the pilot and the security officer. You wouldn't know that they were women the way they behaved. Looks like your daughter might be better off becoming one of those grease monkeys."  
  
"She's not normally like this." Her mother said and tagged on a fake laugh for effect. "She's a little out of sorts with me at the moment, normally she's as sweet as cake. Really soft spoken and good with people and her hands."  
  
"Yeah fucking right I am. Don't lie to the fucker mom, you know as well as I do that I'm not as sweet as cake." Candy said under her breath and this time her mother's hand did connect with the side of her head sending her crashing to the floor. She let out an "Umph." She had got the wind knocked out of her but she knew from experience not to squirm around because it would only stress her muscles out more as she fought for breath again.  
  
"Shut up Candace!" The women snapped and turned back to the hostess as her daughter clutched her sides and made little groaning noises as she struggled for air.  
  
"I really don't think that she would work to well in the hosting sector but you might want to check with the Captain about jobs going among the main crew if you're wanting to off load her at the next stop. Like I said, there might be an apprenticeship going in a more, well, less people orientated profession." The hostess stood up at the same time as Candy pulled herself back to her feet. The women had another of her fake smiles plastered across her face but the teenager just glowered her at.  
  
"I'm outa here." Candy snarled, looking somewhat like a caged wild animal she opened the door before her mother could stop her and left the room.

* * *

Jack checked the ship's scanner for the hundredth time just because it gave her something to do while she waited for _The Aurora_ to come into communication's range. The Aurora was roughly two days away from the planet and getting closer, all that Jack could hope was that she would get back to the ship before Tex had decided to let Danny try his hand at flying the beast.  
  
"You did that two minutes ago." Riddick's voice said from the back of the ship.  
  
"I know." She answered and swivelled the chair around to look at where she knew he was sat with his back up against the wall.  
  
"Come here Jack." He said and she found herself getting up and doing as he said without even thinking about it. Being that automatic with anyone wasn't a good idea and she made a mental note to train herself out of the habit when she next had time but she couldn't be bothered kicking up a fuse at that moment and plonked herself down beside him.  
  
"What?" She sighed as she leaned back against the cold metal wall, her right foot twitching nervously.  
  
"Relax." He answered, "We got about four hours before we dock with _The Aurora_ and it'll be another hour before we're within communications range."  
  
"Easy for you to say." She grimaced. "Grovelling for my job back is not going to be fun as for telling Tex Manor that the only way I'll grovel for my job back in the first place is if he lets a convicted murder become my shadow. The whole thing is not going to go down so well."  
  
"Leave the paranoia to me Jack and try to relax eh? Your nervousness is giving me a headache." Riddick cracked his neck and a few other joints before relaxing against the wall again.  
  
"You really gotta stop doing that, it gives me the shivers." Jack said and made a face.  
  
"What you going to do about Manor anyway? It is his ship and you're going to be asking hell of a lot of him to have me on that ship and free to move around especially in places like the control centre and the cockpit."  
  
"I dunno yet Riddick, all I know is that I can't do this on my own. I need you this time." She said as she got up again and moved to the pilot's chair again and sat down. That was her signal that she didn't want to talk anymore and as far as she knew not talking didn't mind Riddick too much. He talked far less then she did anyway.  
  
Jack couldn't quite get over her sudden desperate need to now that Riddick was right there next to her or behind her, in front of her or at the very least near by. She had managed total of six whole hours of dreamless sleep so far with him watching over her and she was as afraid of the nightmares returning as she was of the monsters themselves. She had admitted it to him, she shook her head slightly annoyed at herself, admitted that she need him, that he made her feel safe.  
  
She closed her eyes and saw the beast that almost killed her again. She felt again the panic and terror of seeing her own death coming at her with teeth and claws and being powerless to stop it, powerless to get away. She had known that that stupid bone she was under wasn't going to protect her forever, she had hear it crack at the same time as she heard Fry's voice shouting and felt light on her face. And then Riddick had come back and it was all over.  
  
Jack rubbed her shoulder blade conscious of the tattoo that was stencilled there in black ink. Her little reminder of them, a bitter keepsake because she couldn't get them out of her head. They had marked her from the start. She had drawn that creature so many times since they had left that planet. She had drawn on memories like the one of Riddick killing that beast that was trying to kill her to stop herself from being afraid. It had worked too, that was until he had no longer been there.  
  
A button in front of her flashed red, she flicked a couple of switches almost automatically and the flashing stopped.  
  
Jack loved to fly. That was the one skill that Riddick had given her that she prized above all the others. She wouldn't have lasted two seconds on her own in 'The Real World' if he hadn't taught her how to pilot. In a way, piloting had become the release she used to make herself feel real and alive, to stop the fear and the memories.  
  
She remembered her personal dill sergeant from the Academy fondly. He had reminded her of Riddick. He was a tall man, a good six one, six two feet tall and was built like a solid muscled tank. His hair was black and cut army style, his eyes angry brown ovals in his head, his nose slightly crooked from the times it had been broken. Sergeant Bill Cody wouldn't take shit from anyone and he wouldn't give an inch. He was the best!  
  
_The Chancer_ had been the first ship that Bill Cody had ever let her pilot on her own. It was sturdy ship, _The Cha_ncer, a cruiser that was reliable with up to date equipment and systems, a sentimental gift that had been given to her on her graduation. There were two small wing rooms, one, which she had fixed into a small bedroom with a connecting bathroom, the other room she hadn't started converting yet. She had never really needed to; she flew _The Chancer_ alone more often then not.  
  
The fingers of one of her hands started kneading the tight muscles in her shoulders. She was conscious of the fact that she had to come up with something to tell Manor and quickly too. The middle aged Captain was responsible for hell of a lot of cargo and lives and if he took it into his head to panic about Riddick then she was screwed and the man behind her would have more mercs on his tail then she cared to think of. Her only other problem was Sam. Sam knew what Riddick looked like; she had seen the man's one and only recent photograph.  
  
She sighed.  
  
The communications button flashed telling her that _The Aurora_ was once again in communications range. Jack looked over her shoulder at Riddick, his eyes were closed, hiding the silver shine but she knew that he would only be dozing. Completely and totally aware of every moment in his surroundings even if he was resting. It was just the way that Riddick was.  
  
"Are you going to put a call out or not?" Riddick asked his eyes still closed, the only part of him moved was his lips as he formed the words.  
  
"I guess." She nodded and put on a headset. "_Aurora_, this is _The Chancer_ please come in." Jack said. She repeated herself a few times and then went silent, only to look over her shoulder at Riddick again but he hadn't moved an inch and his posture hadn't changed.  
  
She tried again. "_Aurora_, this is _The Chancer_ please come in."  
  
"_Chancer_, this is _The Aurora_. Is that you Kit?" It was John's voice that finally answered her after a couple more minutes of calling.  
  
"Yeah it's me. Any chance I can talk to Captain Manor?" She asked.  
  
"I'm here Jack." Captain Manor's voice said. She let a faint smile cross her lips and then concentrated again.  
  
"I'm about two and a half hours away from your position. Permission to come aboard _The Aurora_ and grovel for my job back sir?" She said. 


	8. New Arrangements

Hey all, Drop me a review if you feel like it. Thanks for the reviews from those of you who have reviewed.  
  
Kayla  
  
Chapter 8: New Arrangements.  
  
"How do you want to do this?" Jack looked at Riddick uncertainly as _The Chancer_ clamped down in docking bay four and they waited for the docking bay to re-pressurise and make it safe for them to leave. She hadn't exactly told Captain Manor to be expecting another body besides her own when she got back, she had left that out to tell him face to face.  
  
"Like I told you before when I agreed to this fucked up mess, I'm not letting you outta my fucking sight." Riddick placed his goggles over his eyes and let his hand wonder to the place where his shiv was kept. Her eyes followed his hand and she let herself smile. The look on his face told her clearly enough that shit was going to get near her.  
  
"Welcome back Jack." Sam greeted her as _The Chancer's_ boarding ramp was lowered and the younger of the two females walked down the ramp smiling her own greeting. A frown appeared on the officer's face however as she watched Riddick walk down after Jack, his big boots making hollow noises on the metal of the ramp.  
  
The man was big, an imposing sight. He could have easily passed as one of those body builder types except he seemed like he knew what to do with the muscles he had. Sam didn't know if it was deliberate or not but the minute he saw her looking at him, he flexed a couple like he was a cat that had just woken up from a nap. It was like a lazy warning or something like that.  
  
He was dressed completely in black. He had on a pair of black combat style army type pants, a black wife beater and the same sort of heavy black boots that Jack liked to wear. In fact, Jack wasn't dressed a lot differently from him at that moment, only her top was kaki and she was wearing her usual zip-up vest jacket, that and she wasn't wearing dark welding goggles.  
  
It wasn't hard to work out that the man that had taken up a somewhat defensive stance behind Jack was none other then Richard B. Riddick and Jack wasn't all that surprised that Sam knew who he was. She was surprised however at the look of curiosity in her friend's eyes rather then fear, suspicion or loathing.  
  
"So he wasn't dead after all?" The older women said.  
  
"I'm pretty damn hard to kill." Riddick looked at her.  
  
"Sam this is Riddick. Riddick, this I my friend and _The Aurora's_ security officer Samantha." Jack said. Sam nodded to him and Riddick just looked at her.  
  
"Anyone calls me Samantha and I cut their balls off." Sam grinned almost evilly before turning her attention back to Jack. As far as she was concerned, one warning was always countered by another, that and it was suddenly important to her that Riddick didn't think that she wasn't intimidated by him. "You get that technically your friend there is a wanted killer? That he's killed hellova lot of people and that you're damn crazy bring him here?" Sam watched as Jack's hesitant smile turned to a frown, her eyes growing cold and the muscles along her jaw tightening.  
  
"I'm not an idiot Sam." She said in a low voice as a teenage girl walking through the docking bay doors interrupting them and from the look of it she hadn't meant to. She looked like she was running from something or someone.  
  
The girl's dark brown eyes looked at the two women and then settled on Riddick. There was no fear on her face, just a nasty bruise on her cheekbone and hostility written in her eyes. She hadn't meant to walk in on anyone, let alone the ship's security officer but all of her ideas about solitude were shattered.  
  
No one moved after Sam turned around to see what both Riddick and Jack were focusing on. She just stood there, her eyes quietly watching them. Jack was waiting for Sam to say something to her about where passengers should and should not be and Riddick recognised the teenager as the one he had seen a few days earlier, right before he had left to find Jack.  
  
"I thought all of the passengers would be in cryo sleep by now." Jack said but even still the teen didn't move. She just watched as if spell bound.  
  
"Not all of them this time around. Three don't feel comfortable in cryo sleep apparently. The kid and her mom are two of them." Sam answered.  
  
"That whore isn't my mother." The teenager snapped her eyes flashing her anger.  
  
"This deck is off limits to passengers Candace." Sam said evenly.  
  
"I know. That's why I like it." And then as suddenly as she had arrived in the docking bay, she left it and them staring after her.  
  
"What the heck?" Jack looked a little taken back.  
  
"Lippy little shit. Breaks the rules all over the place but she's slippery. We haven't been able to actually catch the kid yet when she's doing something wrong and her mom seems pretty rough on her anyway so we haven't had the heart to grab her when she's not doing anything wrong." Sam shrugged almost thankful that Candace had chosen that moment to arrive and therefore distracted Jack from what she was going to say.  
  
"Reminds me of you." Riddick said to Jack.  
  
"Hell, I was more of a monster and you never hit me." Jack answered him back. "You had better take us to see Manor Sam."  
  
"You sure he shouldn't stay behind for the moment. Until you break the news to the Captain?" Sam asked.  
  
"Is the merc gone?" Riddick asked and Sam nodded. "Then I'm not staying behind."  
  
"I'm not going to argue with you." Sam said pretty sure that the only way she'd win was if she put a bullet through his head. And she didn't even want to think about the reaction that that would get from Jack.  
  
Sam led them along the corridors of _The Aurora_ to the control room, passing the cockpit where Danny was checking on the autopilot's course and tinkering with things. _"Don't touch the fucking thing!"_ Jack thought as Danny looked at them as they passed by. He didn't look all that happy to see her again, let alone the man with her but was wise enough to say in his seat and say nothing.  
  
"So you've come back." Captain Manor said before anyone was able to announce their presence in the doorway of the room that he was occupying.  
  
"Yes sir." Jack said entering the room.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because all I was doing was running away. You can't find peace while running away sir." She answered. "So I'm back to ask for my job back."  
  
"You turned your back on this crew."  
  
"I made a mistake. I was afraid."  
  
"Give me a good reason why I should let you take the pilot's chair again."  
  
"You probably shouldn't." She shrugged. "But you're risking hell of a lot of lives with Danny in the chair. He's already tampering with shit that he doesn't understand. He's a rookie, green as heck and he doesn't know how to handle a ship this big. I can handle her, _The Aurora_ and I are used to each other, that's why I'm good in the pilot's chair. But apart from that, I have no good reason why you should let me back in that chair."  
  
"And if I say yes? If I give you back your job, what then?" Manor looked passed her to the two figures hovering in the doorway listening.  
  
"Then I'll ask you a favour and take this ship to whatever hell you want me to after I fix the mess that Danny is making of the autopilot and whatever other systems he's tampered with." Jack said. "You gotta put him on a course or send him to the academy before you let him tamper with that shit."  
  
"And if a say I don't agree to your favor?"  
  
"I don't know. Hadn't thought about it." She looked at the ground and licked her lips.  
  
"If I say a flat out no?"  
  
"I leave this ship and trail your ass to make sure that none of those fucking creatures leave that planet and kill the human race." She answered coldly.  
  
"What's the favour?"  
  
"To be able to face that planet, I need the help of one of my very old friends. But as far as the law is concerned, he's not exactly good company to keep but he'll keep me safe and sane. The favour is for you to let him stay on board the ship with me." She looked over her shoulder or a moment nervously.  
  
"I take it he's the one in the doorway with Sam?" Manor looked past her again and Riddick walked into the room, a strange sort of half smile on his face, it was almost threatening and Jack clenched her jaw. Riddick was going to mess it all up before Manor had the chance to think about it. "Who are you exactly?" He asked.  
  
"Richard B. Riddick." Riddick answered.  
  
"Captain Tex Manor." Captain Manor introduced himself and Riddick raised an eyebrow as if to ask if he should be impressed by that fact or not. Jack looked over at him and gave him a pleading look. "I thought you said that he was dead." Manor said to Jack.  
  
"I thought he was dead, I told everyone he was dead, not just you. I only found out a the day that I left when he thought it would be smart to wake me up in the middle of one of my nightmares and tell me he wasn't." She shrugged. "There's a good chance that I couldn't do this run without him. I need him along this time and I know that I'm asking a lot. I really do understand that sir but I wouldn't be asking you if I didn't think that I needed him."  
  
"How do I know that he's not going to murder people while they are sleeping?"  
  
"Because he's won't." She shrugged, "He never hurt anyone but Johns while we were down on that planet, though everyone was tripping about it. I told you that. Johns was going to have me killed. Even ask him. He's not stupid enough to get his ass caught and hauled back to Slam. I'm told it's not all that homey a place."  
  
"You're not going to kill anyone if I let you stay here?" Tex Manor addressed the escaped convict.  
  
"It's not in the master plan." Riddick growled and smirked.  
  
"Then I'll assign you quarters and fill the crew in on who you are." The Captain shrugged. "Danny's not going to like this a bit but Sam's always wanted another person on security, though, I take it, he's here for one person only."  
  
"One less person for anyone else to worry about." Riddick said. "And make sure the quarters are big enough for two. She," He pointed at Jack and she glared at him. "Doesn't leave my sight."

* * *

"What the hell was that little display of aggression in the aid of?" Jack spun on him the minute that Sam had left them alone in their new quarters to settle in and unpack. Riddick certainly hadn't expected her to fly off the handle like that. It had obviously pissed her off and she was glaring rather openly at him. "You don't mouth off at the fucking Captain! God you'd really think that you're an idiot sometimes with your mad testosterone filled actions."  
  
"The Captain deserved to know how things stood."  
  
"I can't believe you fuckin' did that." Jack shook her head as she unzipped her bag and started taking things out and putting them away in an almost temperamental fashion. She realised that she had hell of a lot to worry about if he was going to keep up the aggressiveness.  
  
"I told you how things were going to be if we came back here and I meant it. You can play hero all you want to Jack, I'm here to make sure your ass is still alive when we leave that planet." He shrugged and sat down in a chair. She shook her head and made sure that the safeties were all still on her weapons before pushing them under the double bed.  
  
"I'm going to go fix the autopilot!" She said almost in exasperation and left their quarters but she hadn't taken five steps down the corridor when his footsteps behind her became audible. "Now, you're just trying to piss me off aren't you?" He didn't say a word so she just kept walking until she reached the cockpit where she was to start her work.  
  
"You don't have long to do this Jack. You need sleep." Riddick said sitting in the seat that belonged to Danny.  
  
"You're not my fucking mother Riddick." She growled.  
  
"You had better watch your mouth. I told you not to get lippy." He shrugged and she looked away from her work to give him an even stair before turning back and starting again.  
  
"I've lived without a regular sleeping pattern for this long." She shrugged and started undoing what Danny had done but was surprised to find that he had actually made a couple of improvements to the system that could possibly be useful at a later date. For the first time Danny had actually impressed her but most of that shock was wiped away as she realised how much she had to fix.  
  
"Doesn't mean you don't need one."  
  
"Well what about you then? You never seem to sleep. I mean, the slightest movement wakes you up and then you're totally alert like you had never closed your eyes." She looked over at him. "Don't preach at me. I got enough of that from Imam while he was with us."  
  
"I'm not preaching. Slam does that to you and I've spent enough time in the slam systems to get good at sleeping with one eye open. It doesn't mean that I don't sleep, I do, just a different kind of sleep." He leaned back in his chair while he explained.  
  
"Is it really better to die then go to slam though?" She asked reached over him and flicking a couple of switches while bringing up a side monitor. She was almost done with the autopilot; all she had to really do now was re-key in the course.  
  
"You're a walking corpse the minute you enter one."  
  
The subject of the slam systems immediately brought to mind Kelly Marks. What the hell was it with death and murder that Jack seemed to attract? Yes, since the date that Kelly had been convicted of the murder of a man called Lang, she had killed but her original conviction was a farce, she was innocent of the crime, though she often said that she would have killed Lang if she had gotten to him first. But she hadn't, she was taking the rap for a crime she hadn't committed.  
  
Bret's sister was the sweetest, most caring woman that Jack had ever come across since the death of her mother. From the minute that Jack had stepped into Kelly's life as Kit O'Donnell, Kelly had gone out of her way to be kind and caring. It was just the way she was, although, it had been no secret at the beginning that Kelly really hadn't thought that Jack was good enough for her brother. To the woman's credit however, she hadn't let those feelings affect the way she treated Jack. She had often left her mystified, even keeping Jack's identity secret from everyone when she found out who she really was.  
  
But if Kelly ever got caught, it would be the slam she was headed to.  
  
Jack shook her head, trying to clear the thoughts of her friend from her mind as she deleted Danny's shoddy programming job. "Damn fool made a heap of stupid mistakes. I'm going to have to teach him how to use this thing if Manor won't send him somewhere to learn." Jack started re-keying the course.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"My co-pilot, Danny, he's a spaz." She shrugged trying not to think of home or the place where they were heading. One meant being safe, the other...she didn't even want to think about it. Planet hell hadn't exactly been at the top of her, 'places to visit before she died' list.  
  
"If I'm a spaz O'Donnell, then you're a liar and a deserter." Danny said from behind her. She turned around and glared at him. He always managed to say the right thing to get her pissed off but at that moment he was eyeing Riddick with a mixed look of suspicion and annoyance.  
  
"I'm a survivor Danny." She said coldly.  
  
"And in league with murderers." Danny said. "Wasn't your fiancé's sister convicted of killing that merc that killed her brother? Isn't it true that they haven't been able to find her either because you've been hiding her?"  
  
That comment was enough to make Jack snap. Before Riddick could even have grabbed her, she had leapt out of her seat and tackled Danny. He wasn't even given time to react before she had thrown her first punch, a hit that landed squarely on his jaw, snapping his head around as they fell to the floor together in a tangle of limbs that left him underneath her and getting a beating.  
  
They tumbled around the cockpit floor, Danny trying to get her off him, landing hits here and there and Jack on top of him like a fury trying to pound him into the floor. It was only when Sam arrived that Riddick moved to grab Jack around the middle and pulled her off Danny whom Sam was helping Danny to his feet.  
  
"You fucking bastard!" Jack yelled at Danny, struggling against Riddick's hands and when she found out she couldn't get loose she used his strength as leverage to land a couple of good kicks on Danny's upper body.  
  
"You're a psycho bitch O'Donnell." Danny shrugged Sam off as Jack lunged for him again. "A fucking psycho bitch whore!" He wiped the blood dribbling down his nose off with the back of his hand and glared at her. His pride smarting as much as the places where she had hit him.  
  
"Ahhhh!" She yelled and tried to reach the retreating co-pilot as he walked out of the room.  
  
"Sit!" Riddick growled and practically tossed her into a chair as Sam stalked out after Danny. Jack made to follow but Riddick pushed her back into her chair and gave her a stare that made her want to scream again.  
  
"Damn you!" She glared up at him, licking her spilt lip.  
  
"You can't beat everyone up Jack."  
  
"Fuck you!" She answered as Sam walked back in glaring. Jack looked between the two of them before pushing past the security officer and leaving.  
  
"That's the second time I've pissed her off today." Riddick said as he followed her out of the room past Sam who looked slightly mystified.

* * *

Riddick stood with his back up against the wall of the control room, his arms folded across his broad chest and a look that didn't say or mean anything on his face. A rather timid, mouse like young man was standing a short distance from him on his left, his nostrils slightly flared and his hand straying every once and a while to his golden brown hair as his hazel eyes flickered from him to the others in the room and back again. He smelt of fear. He looked afraid.  
  
Sam stood on the other side of him in much the same stance that he was in, with her arms folded across her chest and her feet slightly apart but she had a frown on her face. Unlike the kid on his left, Sam didn't seemed to take any notice of him at all. She seemed to have lost her fear of him after they had left the docking bay. She was a levelheaded woman and seemed to trust Jack. Maybe she even had a little too much trust in Jack, Riddick wasn't sure yet.  
  
Jack was standing side by side with Danny, an unreadable expression on her face that she still hadn't been given much of a chance to clean up since their little brawl. In her right fist, clenched tightly was a cloth she had been given to wipe the blood off her slip lip. To her credit however, Danny did look worse off then she did, one eye black and blue and almost swollen shut and a number of other bruises on his arms and head that she had given him.  
  
"...this is the last thing I expected from you Jack!" He tuned into the lecture that Captain Manor was giving the girl he had set out for some reason to protect. He could tell by the look on the Captain's face that he was almost through with the two crewmates in front of him. "Have you got anything to say for yourselves? Either of you?" Jack's head snapped up when he spoke his final words. They were obviously too much of a challenge for her to ignore as she start speaking a bare moment later.  
  
"I'm sorry for making your day harder sir, but I'm not sorry for what I did. Some people need to learn to keep their mouths shut and not mouth off about other people's families sir." Jack up until that moment had been smart and kept her mouth closed but it seemed that that power had escaped her the minute she was given a chance to let loose. Captain Manor's expression never changed but if it hadn't been such and obvious movement, Riddick would have shook his head and rolled his eyes. The girl should have stayed silent.  
  
Riddick shifted slightly from one foot to the other and the kid to his left nearly jumped out of his skin, which didn't go unnoticed by the one person that shouldn't have cared too much. Jack whipped around, a look of exasperation and pain on her face.  
  
"She's a psycho..." Danny was saying when her words cut through his but not because of their volume.  
  
"He's not going to hurt you John." Her voice was nearly a whisper and caught everyone's attention. Riddick raised both of his eyebrows at her and didn't fail to notice the hurt expression on her face. This was harder for her then he had thought it was. "I wouldn't bring anyone on this ship with me if I thought they were going to hurt you. Yeah, he's," She gestured at him, "Hurt people, killed people. I've seen him but he's not evil, those people were threatening my life, his life, our lives. I would have done the same for him, like I would do the same for you."  
  
"Kit...Jack, I mean...I mean..." John stumbled over his words because of simple nervousness and fright. Jack looked like she had just taking a whipping. She shook her head and spun on her heel, leaving the room at a near run. They were all silent; they seemed almost stunned but the reaction of their pilot. Certainly Riddick hadn't expected her to get all hyped up over him. "I didn't mean anything by it," John looked around at them nervously, his eyes stopping on Riddick. "I didn't, I didn't." He shook his head, his eyes widening slightly in fear as they looked at him.  
  
"Don't worry about it Johnny boy." Sam said soothingly word had obviously gotten around that Riddick was stationed as their pilot's protector.  
  
"She's a psycho bitch!" Danny shook his head violently. "Why the hell you gave her, her job back I have no idea. She's going to rip this whole fucking crew apart. She's already got John shit scared."  
  
"I think it's me that's got the boy spooked." Riddick fixed his eyes on the co-pilot who looked over his shoulder rather suddenly at him.  
  
"I don't know what to call her or who she is or anything. I feel nervous as heck right now." John said ignoring Danny's comments and Riddick's corresponding reply.  
  
"Call her what you're comfortable calling her, if that's Kit, then call her Kit, if that's Jack, then call her Jack." Captain Manor said. "You don't have anything to worry about when it comes to her John. You know Jack and she keeps her word."  
  
"The thing with Jack is that all of her aliases have the same personality." Riddick stopped leaning against the wall and spoke choosing his words carefully. "Jack's hell of a good play actor but only because she holds on to Jack and goes places where no one knows her name or her past. So all she has to do is change her name. You knew her, just not her name." They all looked at him dumbfounded and the Captain gave him a smile. A smile of all things.  
  
"I thought you weren't going to let her out of your sight." Captain Manor was still smiling at him like he would smile at a friend.  
  
"Even I know when she needs some space." Riddick replied and left the room a frown on his face. 


	9. Busted Up

Hey all, I'll probably only post one more chapter before running off on my 7 week holiday (which I must say, I feel like I've well and truly earned after the way my year has gone.) after I get back from that, I should be able to post a lot more as I won't stop writing just because I'm away. If I get the chance to randomly post a chapter while I'm away I will but don't know how likely that will be.  
  
Thanks all for your reviews.  
  
Kayla  
  
Chapter 9: Busted Up.  
  
Jack looked at herself critically in the bathroom mirror and was disgusted by what she saw in the reflection of her own face. She looked like she had gone from brawling to having a roll about in the hayloft of some unknown barn with some unknown guy. She had a nice spilt lit, a bruise on her left cheekbone and a cut through the corresponding eyebrow, otherwise her muscles just ached and she was plain tried.  
  
At one point the washcloth in her hand had been white, now it was brown and red, dyed with antiseptic and blood from the cuts she had had to re-open to clean. Danny's comment had made her mad, seething mad and John's words and actions had hurt worse then the punches that Danny had landed. John was her friend; Danny just pissed her off because of his blatant lack of knowledge. Those thoughts were about the only thing stopping her from feeling the sting of the antiseptic.  
  
"Nasty fucking shit." She winced as she put the washcloth over her eyebrow again, dabbing lightly.  
  
"Yeah, something like that." Her eyes looked past her own reflection to see the young teen that Sam had called Candace standing in the doorway observing her. "Came to see who won and since the guy looked worse, I take it you won in some twisted sorta way. You know he had to get someone else to clean the nasty as hell cut on his face?"  
  
"Stitches?" She found herself asking.  
  
"Yep." Jack smirked when she heard the answer. The idea that he had been that damaged by her couldn't help but send shivers of unexpected pleasure up her spine. The guy was a royal arse and she didn't feel at all sorry for him.  
  
"You're a slippery little devil so I've hear." Jack soaked her cloth in the brown antiseptic liquid in the basin in front of her. The kid shrugged and boldly moved deeper into the room but not close enough to be easily reached and she was still in a direct line with the door.  
  
"Depends on who's trying to catch me and why." She shrugged. "You learn to be weary of people if you're me or smart."  
  
"I'm Jack. Who are you?" Jack asked wringing out the cloth before dipping it back in the liquid again.  
  
"Candace Dalton. My mom's a crack whore and I'm practically dumped anyway cause I can't get back to my dad." It was more then Jack had asked for but she didn't mind if the kid wanted to talk to her. She could remember times when she was that age and had no one to talk to. At least the girl wasn't Riddick and his stupid questions and stony silences or Sam and the lecture that she was going to get later when she least expected it.  
  
"Parents aren't all that kid." Jack said shrugging knowingly.  
  
"Your folks kick you out?" There was almost curiosity on the girl's face but it was guarded, highly guarded and by what other defence mechanisms the girl was hiding, Jack wasn't sure.  
  
"Nope." She shook her head and reached into her med-kit for cream to put on the scratch marks on her neck. "Died on me. Thought it would be fun to bail on me probably."  
  
"So a bit bitter eh?" Candace said and Jack shot her an annoyed glance though, she was more annoyed with herself for her own slip up then with the girl. "So what? The big guy is your brother?"  
  
"Not even close." She winced as the cream stung but she looked back in the mirror but not at her own reflection. It was easier to look at the girl through the mirror then it would be to turn around and give her, her full attention. That and the simple movement of turning around would probably spook the kid and she wouldn't come back again. "Riddick is Riddick, no more and no less..."  
  
"Riddick?" The girl actually had recognition on her face.  
  
"Yeah like I said, Riddick is no more and no less then Riddick."  
  
"He's a whole bloody lot more then just Riddick, he's a fucking murderer who split from slam!" Candace gave her a funny look. It was a look of horror and interest, mingled with fear but anticipation. It was like the kid wanted to meet Riddick but at the same time wasn't sure if she really did want to meet him. "You have no idea how hard it is to get out of a place like that. Only top security prisoners go to slam and you don't get out, there's no probation. He's a fucking legend in that fucking place."  
  
"How would you know that?" Jack turned her head very slowly and looked straight at the girl. Something didn't fit there.  
  
"Dad was a merc." The kid shrugged nonchalantly as if that information wouldn't be a big deal to Jack. Jack's guard flew up. She had been indirectly hunted by too many mercs since she was fifteen to want anything to do with more of them and if the kid was mixed up with mercs she wasn't sure that her being around was such a good idea. "What do you love him or something?"  
  
"Where the heck did that question come from?"  
  
"Well it's kinda obvious, well at least it looks that way. Don't tell me you haven't noticed it? I mean, the way he hovers all over you like you can't look after yourself. Only ever half a step behind you and all that shit." Candace answered her. "It makes it look like you're either his sister or his lover so which is it?"  
  
"Neither."  
  
"I don't believe that for a second. You're always looking over your shoulder to make sure he's there."  
  
"Yeah, I guess I am but for no other reason then I live with the knowledge that he could be gone at any moment. He only sticks around for as long as he wants to or until whatever job it is he has is finished. If I don't watch out, he'll be gone without me even knowing about it."  
  
"Why do you care?"  
  
"You're just trying to get me to tell you that I love him aren't you?"  
  
"Well you would be telling the truth then wouldn't you?"  
  
"Get over it. There is no truth where you're digging."  
  
"If you say so." Candace gave her a knowing smile and Jack frowned.  
  
"You know how I got my shiner, you wanna tell me how you got yours? It's only fare." She masked her shock and displeasure with a question.  
  
"My mom took a swipe at me after I mouthed off at one of those hostess whores, she knocked the wind out of me good this time." Candace shrugged and her eyes swept Jack from top to bottom. It was a look of assessment; she was working out just how much of a danger that Jack would be to her. "I wasn't fast enough this time. Usually I can dodge the worst of them."  
  
"So you've met one of the three Cs?" Jack motioned for her to take a seat but she shook her head.  
  
"Yeah, mom's trying to dump me. Best way she can think of to get back at my dad, not that she's really all that good a mom or anything. He probably already thinks that I'm dead. I mean, who wouldn't if they were him, I disappeared months ago and mom with me. He saw her beat the shit out of me, no doubt he thinks that she killed me in a fit of rage by now."  
  
"Don't worry about it kid. These things work themselves out."  
  
"Yeah, well, bye and all that shit." Then she was gone.  
  
"Sweet and simple, a regular little Betty-Sue." Jack said before turning around to get back to patching herself up. Only she wasn't given the chance. Riddick walked in and closed the door after him. She groaned mentally, she didn't want to have to deal with him at that moment in time.  
  
However, Riddick said nothing. He just took the cloth out of her hands and motioned for her to take a seat in the chair. She sat and with a simple word he dimmed the lights dramatically so he could take off his goggles. He rinsed the cloth he had taken from her and pulled up a seat in front of her, sitting down himself. He let one of his hands grip the back of her head and brought the hand with the cloth up to her lip. She winced and tried to pull away but his grip was too firm.  
  
He shook his head as he lightly ran the cloth over the split in her lip and then across the cut on her eyebrow checking them for something but she wasn't sure what and it stung like hell. She hadn't been pressing the damn cloth so hard against the wounds and they were cleaning up just fine. What was this guy about, did he feed off pain or something?  
  
She reached up to touch her lip with one hand but he grabbed it and forced her to put in back in her lap before she could touch it. She made a small noise of frustration at the back of her throat but he wasn't listening, a look of concentration was etched onto his face. He inspected the scratch marks on her neck but thankfully left them alone as he turned away from her and put the cloth back in the basin and bringing the med-kit between them.  
  
Jack sighed as she watched him pull a couple of butterfly closure bandages out of the box and pulled away slightly. "Sit still." Riddick said and carefully put them over the cut on her eyebrow. He inspected his handiwork and then sat back in his chair and looked at her, his arms folded across his chest. "Any other damage that I should know about?"  
  
"My wrist hurts a bit but that's all besides scrapped knuckles. I'll wrap it later." She shrugged and he gave her another scrutinising look. She pursed her lips and looked at him evenly. "It's not broken or anything and neither am I so stop fussing. I've been hurt worse before now."  
  
"Yeah and you don't tend to tell me or anyone else."  
  
"Well it's my problem."  
  
"Enough of the attitude Jack."  
  
It wasn't that he thought she would deliberately lie to him and she knew it. It was more that she had never been the best patient and that she was good at hiding things, the truth of a situation mainly. She would almost let herself bleed to death rather then see a doctor. Last time she had got hurt and failed to tell him about it, she had called it omitting the truth. Well it hadn't impressed him much but she hated doctors and stitches and just about anything medical.  
  
She knew that he was thinking about the time she had gotten caught but a random guy walking down the ally that led to where her and Riddick were staying and got herself slashed across the back. She knew without him having to tell her, that was after he had found out, that she was rather lucky that that was all that he'd given her. She was a good bit quicker and more agile then most men and she had made good her escape.  
  
She had managed to hide the damage for a good week before she had got into a fight with a girl in a bar and re-opened the wound. Riddick had chosen the moment when they were walking out of the door to touch the small of her back in a directive way and the blood became extremely obvious through her white t-shirt. She had never been so embarrassed in her whole life.  
  
"You know that I don't have a problem with who and what I am Jack." He said finally.  
  
"I don't have a problem with who or what you are either Riddick. I never have, you should know that." She shook her head and looked down at the floor. "It was about more then you, the fight, what happened in the Control Centre. It was about Kelly and trust and about who I am. But it doesn't matter, I should have been expecting it anyway. I was in a way, I just..." Her voice faded away and she had to make a conscious effort not to bite her lip.  
  
"These people were you friends, it matters to you."  
  
"Well it shouldn't. I know how people react to these sorts of things. I've seen it before. It shouldn't matter."  
  
"Well it obviously does."  
  
"What if I don't want to talk about it?"  
  
"Then you don't have to. Maybe you should go take a shower and then get some sleep."  
  
"Yeah," She shrugged. "I guess." She stood up and pushed her chair out of the way as she turned around and walked through the door that led into the bathroom.  
  
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How had he managed to miss the transformation that seemed to have taken place in Jack? One minute it seemed she was the idolising kid, then the wildcat he had done his best to train and all of a sudden, she was a hurting and brooding young women who didn't seem to trust anyone or that now, because of him, no one else seemed to trust. And that thought did not make him feel good. He had never wanted to hurt her, it had never been his intention.  
  
She hadn't said anything to him after she walked back into the main room towel drying her hair and dressed in a white tank top and boxer shorts. She had changed a lot. She had kept her hair short for a long time after letting it grow back but now it was down to her shoulder blades with a slight curl in the ends. Her skin was tanned a light golden brown and she had managed quite innocently to wear the right clothes to show off her well- proportioned curves.  
  
Jack was quite the women under her tough act.  
  
Riddick sat back in his chair and watched her as she moved around the room, picking up a comb and binding for her hair and quickly brushing and pleating it. She had gotten herself a couple nice bruises, one over her shoulder by her tattoo and one that he could just see on her hip when she stretched exposing a thin strip of her flat stomach.  
  
"Get your mind out of the gutter Riddick." His thoughts warned him. "That's Jack and you have to sleep in the same bed as her so get over it."  
  
"What side of the bed do you want Riddick? Wall or edge?" She asked finally tossing the towel in a small bin in the corner of the room. He hadn't exactly expected the Captain to give them a double room when he had asked that the room be big enough for two, he had expected a bunk room or something but at least the fact that there was only one bed wasn't phasing Jack.  
  
"Edge."  
  
"K." Jack turned down the blankets and slipped her long legs into the bed and rolled over so that her back was to him and she was facing the wall on the far side. He knew that she wasn't asleep, knew that she hadn't even closed her eyes just laid blinking in the darkness, hugging her pillow to her.  
  
He stood up and rolled his neck feeling satisfied with the popping noises that his vertebra were making. Jack cringed but he ignored it as he sat down on the edge of the bed and taking his wife beater and pants off, his boots already discarded on the floor. He tucked his shiv under his pillow before getting in the bed himself.  
  
Riddick lay with one arm raised over his head, his hand cradling the back of his neck, his silvery eyes picking out the shapes in the darkened room like it was still light. Jack shivered next to him and sucked in a deep breath moving a little closer to him. He didn't stop her, instead he rolled over onto his side and slid her a little closer so that her back was pressed up against his front.  
  
"Tell me about Kelly." Riddick breathed against her neck and felt her relax slightly against him.  
  
"I'm her girl. I did some really stupid shit after Bret died and she made sure that she took the blame for it all. It's all my fault, everything that she had to go through was my fault and she didn't blame me for it." Jack said, her own head resting on her elbow. "She's not tall, a strawberry blonde but she can't walk anymore. Not much more to tell. She's basically what's left of my family, her, Johnny and Damien."  
  
"You were going to get married to her brother?"  
  
"He had asked me. I hadn't said yes or no." She answered and stifled a yawn with the back of her hand. "I don't know what I would have said if things had worked out differently."  
  
"Who are Johnny and Damien?"  
  
"Jonathan Marks is Kelly's husband. I don't know how long they were married for before I showed up but they are very well suited to each other." He could hear a smile in her voice. "Johnny is like a big brother, that's the role he has assumed in my life, he's kind and generous and tough. Looking at them... they love each other so much, it's almost enough to make you sick." She ran her fingers through the end of her pleat. "Or break your heart." She said. "It'll be interesting to see what you two make of each other if you ever meet."  
  
"Eh?"  
  
"Well, Johnny's full of noble intentions. You guys are different in a lot of way but also very similar. You're both stubborn and strong, don't mind using violence if you have to either to save your own skin or make sure that the people close to you are safe. He doesn't take well to new people, especially threatening looking new people."  
  
"I look threatening?" He let mock surprise filter into his voice. Sometimes he wondered what it was about him that she had latched on to that was enough to make him less frightening for her. In fact, to her it seemed he wasn't threatening or frightening at all. It was one of those things that he didn't understand.  
  
"You're a lot more threatening then I like to let you think you are. You think that John got all weak-kneed because of your rap sheet? It'll be something of a stand off between you and Jonathan, I wouldn't be surprised." She let herself chuckle lightly. "And Damien is their adopted son. Kelly picked him up somewhere just before Bret died." She shuddered thinking about it. "I don't think I want to talk anymore."  
  
"Then don't. Go to sleep Jack."  
  
"Maybe." She replied and let her arm rest next to his arm that was wrapped around her middle.  
  
They laid in silence after that but it was a good hour or two before Jack stopped fighting sleep and let her eyes flutter closed. Her breathing evened out and she started making the silly little noises that she had used to make when she was content. The corners of his mouth twitched into a smile. It seemed that not a lot had changed with her in that regard.  
  
She made noises in her sleep, it made it easy to tell what kinda dreams she was having. As long as she was happy and nothing in her sleep bothered her she sounded slightly like a cat purring after having got it's back rubbed, when she was scared or upset she whimpered or made little groaning noises like someone was stabbing her with tiny needles.  
  
The first few times that he had heard those noises it had startled him, set him on edge but after a while not hearing them worried him. For a moment he caught himself wondering about her relationship with Bret. Obviously the guy had loved her enough to try and protect her with his life but she hadn't mentioned the marriage proposal. Jack was not a girl that he could personally see as anybody's wife. She was too independent and a plain tough ass.  
  
She rolled over onto her side so that she was facing him, her mouth puckered into a little frown, her cheeks flushed. He could feel her hand wedged up against his abs and her long legs pressed up against his. Her breath was hot on his neck and she made another one of those stupid purring noises. He knew it was purely innocent; she was cold and moving toward him because he was warm.  
  
Had Bret been privy to all of her little quirks? Just thinking about it, he had to ask himself one small question.  
  
Why the hell did he care so much anyway?  
  
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Jack woke with a start, a start that made her jerk. Her eyes flew open, her head was pounding and she was in a blind panic but she didn't know why. There was something wrong. She knew it, something was wrong!  
  
She threw back the covers, pushing Riddick out of her way and jumping to the floor pulling a pair of blue jeans on and grabbing her blade before running out of the room without thinking twice and before he could do anything about it.  
  
She could hear her own bare feet slapping off the metal floor, she could feel the cold and the string but she kept running, she checked out the main flight deck, the control room the cockpit, ran in on Sam and John and managed not to wake the Captain. She flew along the passenger deck, looking in all of the cryo tubes, her eyes darting around in the dark but seeing nothing but the grey shapes that she knew should be there.  
  
Nothing seemed to be out of place but something was still nagging at her. Something she couldn't explain.  
  
A hand flew out of the darkness and grabbed her arm pulling her off balance and she slammed hard into the floor, her blade flying out of her hand and landing too far away for her to reach it easily even if she could have at that moment. The hand never left her arm as she lay on the ground writhing as she fought to breath, as she fought the pain shooting from her shoulder.  
  
Gods, why did she keep letting herself get hurt?  
  
"Danger will be brought onboard." A voice said so softly that she wasn't sure that she had heard it or if it was just the blood pounding in her ears as she closed her eyes tightly and another hand moved her head so that she would be looking at a wall if she opened her eyes again.  
  
The sound of pounding feet from down the hall seemed to spook whoever had grabbed her and they split and just in time. Riddick was suddenly standing over her, his goggles pushed up onto his forehead, his quicksilver eyes flashed around the hallway and he looked down at her. He reached down to pick her to her feet but her voice stopped him.  
  
"Don't touch me. Just don't." She said through clenched teeth, the voice and it's message completely forgotten.  
  
"What the hell?" He said kneeling on one knee, his shiv held in one hand and his eyes moving around. "Come on, we gotta get you up."  
  
"Don't touch me Riddick." She groaned. "Don't you dare fucking touch me, I've fucking busted myself up."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"Don't know." She answered shaking her head and gritting her teeth to hold back a cry of pain as she flipped herself from her side onto her back. She closed her eyes, squeezing her eyelids tightly trying to block out the pain trying to think about something else. "Get Sam." She whispered.  
  
"I'm not going anywhere and I'm not getting anyone." He growled.  
  
"I should have expected that answer." She said opening her eyes again and using her good arm to reach over and prod her shoulder. "I don't think it's broken. Might be dislocated but it's not broken."  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Broken feels different."  
  
"Well at least that's something." He said helping her to sit up. "What the hell was wrong with you?"  
  
"I dunno. I can't remember anything specific, just a feeling that something wasn't right." She winced as his fingers prodded her shoulder feeling the damage for himself.  
  
"That's the shit you pull when you have a feeling?"  
  
"Don't you dare get up on a high horse Mr. Paranoia-vigilance-is-everything- Jumpy!" Jack turned her head and glared at him as he put sudden pressure on her shoulder and there was a nasty popping noise. Her mouth was open in silent scream and pain was written all over her face but she clenched her teeth, only letting a sort of pain filled sob out of her throat.  
  
"Dislocated." He shrugged and picked her up like she weighed nothing at all.  
  
"There are some times when I really hate you Riddick." Were her words before she rested her head against his shoulder and then passed out. 


	10. Damaged Goods

Well everyone, this is it, I'm off home to the grand ol' US of A for my 7 week holiday in just under 12 hours but got this done so figured I would post it before jumping countries. ( thanks all for your reviews and I'm glad that you're enjoying the story as it goes along, I have been seriously concidering re-naming it though because there's a lot that happens after visiting Planet Hell (an event that takes place rather soon as far as chapter time). Any name ideas would be welcome because I'm just not sure that the name I have now fits as far as the story so far. Shrugs.  
  
Well I'm off. Please drop me a review, I love reading what you all think.  
  
Kayla

* * *

Chapter 10: Damaged Goods.  
  
"What the hell did you say happened to her?" Jack could hear Sam's voice through the haze in her head, the ship's security officer sounded annoyed and anxious and Jack didn't know why, she wasn't dead. Jack forced her eyes open, her head was pounding but her shoulder was numb and her side didn't hurt as badly as it had before.  
  
What the hell had happened after she had passed out?  
  
"All I saw was her hitting the ground hard, like she had hit a brick wall." Riddick answered her, his voice a low threatening growl. "But there's a hand print on her upper arm."  
  
"I have eyes you know." Sam snapped at him.  
  
"Riddick?" She whispered slowly blinking a couple of times, trying to pull herself together but getting nowhere. She tired to concentrate but it was taking her time to work past the fog and when she did all she felt were pinpricks of pain.  
  
"I'm here." He put a hand on her forehead and she closed her eyes again letting herself pull comfort from the fact that he was there. She took a deep breath through her mouth and then her jaw muscles clenched as she forced her eyes open again and looked up at Riddick's face. He looked a little concerned but she couldn't force a reassuring smile to her face, she was too groggy.  
  
"Can you tell me what happened Jackie?" Sam asked in a soothing voice as she felt a prick in one arm. She jerked her arm away but she knew it was too late, whatever Sam had put in that needle was running through her veins. Why hadn't Riddick stopped her? He knew she didn't like needles or mind numbing drugs.  
  
"Had a feeling that something was wrong so I started checking the ship, only I had been running I think and I was grabbed and pulled backward. I hit the floor and then, well he came after me." She said feeling suddenly clearer and slightly sick. But the nausea only got worse, building up in her throat. "I think I'm going to be sick." She said suddenly sitting up and forcing herself to run through to the bathroom where she was violently sick in the toilet. He was right behind her, one arm slung around her middle supporting her as she retched and the other hand holding her hair out of her face.  
  
Sam shook her head; it was the last thing she would have ever expected to see. She knew that often big men who appeared tough were actually quite gentle and caring but that didn't fit with what she had heard of Riddick. To see a known killer, a man who was undisputedly lethal, so carefully holding the retching girl was almost too strange to see and believe. There was something about Jack that he seemed to be drawn to and Sam was sure that it was more then just wanting to keep her alive.  
  
"It's alright Jack." He murmured softly in her ear as she took a couple of strangled breaths and stopped being sick.  
  
"Don't fucking tell me it's alright, it's not fucking alright." She said, one of her hands gripping the arm that he had wrapped tightly around her middle, her fingernails digging into his skin leaving little half moon imprints as she retched again.  
  
Jack had always been so jumpy, a little paranoid and as tough a chick as they came but even so she hadn't expected that was because of being dragged around and trained by a man like Riddick. Well it wasn't as though she could see Jack's time with Riddick as a time when he raised her. But the way he was with her, quiet and protective, the out of place tenderness and the seemingly out of character smile that he had offered Jack at one point couldn't help but make her wonder of she had judged him too quickly.  
  
After a few minutes Jack finally stopped being sick and slumped back in the big man's arms. He was supporting her whole weight and murmuring things in her ear that Sam couldn't hear as she moistened a cloth and moved into the room. Jack gratefully accepted the damp cloth that Sam handed her, she wiped her mouth, her breathing still a little heavy and her stomach muscles hurting. "I hate being sick." She groaned but a faint smile passed across her lips as she leaned her head back on Riddick's shoulder, resting for a moment. The normal Jack was resurfacing.  
  
"Now that that's out of you, you'll start feeling better pretty quickly." Sam handed her a glass of water, which the younger girl sipped on before flushing the toilet and pushing Riddick away so she could stand up and walk back into the main room but he was only half a step behind her and a good thing he was too because she seemed extremely unsteady on her feet.  
  
"I'm fine already Sam, a little bit sore and tired but fine." Jack shook her head as she lowered herself into a sitting position on the bed feeling like some sort of giant wimp, passing out and being sick because of a little bit of pain. "We really don't need to tell Captain Manor about this." She said closing her eyes and rubbing her temples with her fingers trying to make the thumping go away.  
  
"He already knows Jack. Said that you are off duty until it's time to land _The Aurora_. If you're not feeling better by then, Danny and I will take the cruiser down." Sam smiled apologetically. "I was with him when Candace came and got me."  
  
"Great. Now I really am in deep shit." Jack shook her head but then stopped, the action hurting her already pounding head.  
  
"You alright?" Riddick asked, the note of concern back in his voice.  
  
"Don't you dare start babying me." Jack snapped at him, taking her annoyance about the Captain knowing of her condition out on him. If anyone could understand why she was upset then Riddick probably would but she was too pissed off to care at that moment. "Don't you dare baby me." He grunted, a sound full of displeasure. He knew as well as she did that he had never babied her.  
  
"I'm not babying you."  
  
"I said stop it Riddick!" Jack looked at him and Sam shook her head. It was obvious who Jack had learned that look from. Riddick glared right back at her until she looked away and then left the room. They seemed like they were good at pissing each other off. At least there would never be a dull day when they were around the pair.  
  
What had Riddick said to her when he had gone to fine Jack after the fight? That he'd already pissed her off twice? Well, that would be the third time and she was smart enough to know that that hadn't been the first time and wouldn't be the last. They knew how to push each other's buttons to well.  
  
"Where did he go?" Sam asked shocked that he had just left like he had, made Jack back down but then left.  
  
"He's standing just outside the door. He didn't go anywhere." Jack answered but there was something in her voice that didn't sound as sure as she was meaning it to sound. This time had she crossed the line?  
  
"It was Candace who got me Jack."  
  
"I know, you already said that." Jack nodded trying to get her friend to get to her point.  
  
"Could she have had something to do with whatever it was the happened or unsettled you?" There was the point.  
  
"The kid wouldn't try and pull that kinda stunt. She's not the right type for that kinda mischief."  
  
"How can you be sure of that?"  
  
"We've spoken. Riddick was coming and it spooked her so she ran off. Her dad was a merc, she knows all about him and apparently she's decided that avoiding him is the best course of action for her to take. He was right when he said that she acts a lot like I did at her age. She's a stinking lippy monster!" Jack blinked a couple of times.  
  
"Thought you said you were worse?"  
  
"I did. I was in a way. I was violent. She's not learned to be violent yet, lippy and slippery, the type to cause a little bit of chaos, yes, but not violent." Jack said rubbing her eyes.  
  
"You sure you're alright Jack?"  
  
"Yeah I'm fine." Jack reached out and gripped her friend's hand as if that proved that she was alright. "How long before we reach planet hell?"  
  
"Twenty-eight hours or so." Sam shrugged. "Give or take a minute or two, you know how that goes."  
  
"Yep." She replied. "If I've got that kinda time then I'm going to take advantage of my short break. Do a couple things for me though eh Sam?" Jack said laying down again and rolling herself up underneath the blankets.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Tell Danny I'll geld him if he even dreams of touching anything in that damned cockpit that he's not meant to, that includes the things that he has any doubt at all about and make sure that Riddick really hasn't left. I kinda need to know he's around." There was an almost pained look on the younger girl's face. Sam didn't need any more explanation then that, Riddick was the one person that Jack was truly dependent on and now that he was back in her life, it seemed that there was no way that Jack was going to let him leave it again.  
  
Sam nodded and gave her a soft smile that was meant to be reassuring. There were times that Jack couldn't help but remind her of a little kid, desperate for love and acceptance, the one thing that could crack her armour. At least Sam now knew why she was the way she was. It wasn't their love and acceptance that she was really after, it was Riddick's, only problem was that she didn't realise that she already had it.  
  
Riddick appeared in the doorway as Jack watched Sam leave. He was frowning, but then, he was always frowning so technically it meant nothing. His eyes swept over her and she closed her eyes again, content that he was around. Whatever it was that Sam had stabbed her with had numbed the pain but she still felt a little bit weak.  
  
"You going to try and sleep for a while this time?" Riddick asked sitting down on the bed next to her, his hand reached out and soon was laying on her forehead again.  
  
"Umhum." She said sleepily not bothering to open her eyes again as she curled up toward him, clutching one pillow tightly and falling back to sleep.

* * *

Dr. Johnston sat down in the chair that he had placed in front of the cage in the darkened room. They had had to learn the hard way that those stupid creatures could be killed by direct sunlight or really, light of any kind. They had learned the hard way that what they thought were stupid creatures weren't actually as stupid as they appeared to be on first glance. His night vision goggles gave him a clear view of the creature that was swaying from side to side behind the titanium bars, it's eyes never leaving him.  
  
His colleagues called the creature 'Beau', ironic really. It was anything but beautiful even if it did possess a sort of grace that fascinated the Zoologist. That grace had held a few of his colleagues in a trance when they first saw the creatures. Beau was the strongest of those that they had captured, it had killed the other four creatures and one of his handlers and yet they hadn't done what perhaps they should have done along time ago.  
  
They hadn't killed it.  
  
Beau could see him quite clearly, Dr. Johnston knew it but it no longer scared him. The creature knew that there was no way it could get at him and Dr. Johnston took great pleasure in the realisation too. They had stumbled across the creatures quite by accident. They had been sent down after the investigators of the crash sight had left to do a little bit of scientific research, he had been sent with the because of some bugs found in alcohol bottles.  
  
Only they had found more then just bugs and now he ran the show.  
  
Though their findings hadn't been written up in the reports of the crash investigators yet, it turned out that the girl and the holy man hadn't been lying about how their comrades died. He had seen first hand just how little the creatures left when they fed. Maybe Riddick had had nothing to do with the killings, maybe Riddick was dead. They weren't sure yet. They wouldn't be until they got back to the labs.  
  
Dr. Johnston stood up and walked a couple of feet closer to the beast. It stopped it's shifting and looked at him. The scientists were all weary of the beast and with good justification, it was a killer and could not be tamed but that did not mean that it might in some way be a scientific break through. All he had to do was get Beau off of the planet somehow. Maybe Beau would make him famous or win him some award for the discovery.  
  
"Dr. Johnston. We've had a communication from The Aurora." Kirsten Leal walked into the room. "They're going to land their ship about a mile or so from the crash site. You'll be especially interested in their pilot."  
  
"Why?" He turned and looked at the young research assistant.  
  
"She's been to this planet once before."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"According to our contact, she was one of the survivors of the crash. Jack, I believe he said her name was and that he would do his best to keep her out of our way but that she could make life difficult if she found out about Beau. She might have a greater understanding of him then even we do and if she was able to tell the captain then there would be no way she would let Beau aboard the ship."  
  
"Understandably so from her statement." Dr. Johnston nodded. He remembered reading it, how haunted the written words seemed to be but there were holes in her story, chunks missing but how haunted those words were, was striking "How long until they arrive?"  
  
"A little over twenty-four hours."  
  
"Start administering the tranc to the creature." He said and then left.

* * *

When Jack woke up a number of hours later Riddick was gone and she found that instead of feeling afraid or even slightly annoyed that he had left her, she was actually a little disappointed. She rolled over and smiled when she realised that the space next to her still felt slightly warm and smelted distinctly like him. He hadn't left all that long ago.  
  
She shook her head at her own thoughts, if she didn't pull herself together soon and learn how to control her stupid and raging hormones then she was sentencing herself to a very long flight. She wasn't even the right type for infatuation she told herself firmly and as far as she had found so far, she wasn't the type for love either.  
  
"Lights." Was the first word that she spoke as she sat up and swung her long legs out of the bed, although, none too freely, she felt stiff all over, her escapades in the middle of the night certainly not forgotten. Just because Riddick was around again didn't mean that she had forgotten what light was or that she had left her obsession with light behind her. She hadn't. Light was too important to be so easily forgotten and for the time that he was gone she would soak in the light. It made her feel better, physically and mentally better.  
  
She got up and quickly changed into a pair of black cargo pants that rode low on her hips and a grey tank top that left a strip of her tanned stomach visible, the same type of clothes she wore when lounging about at home. Only after she was dressed did she bother figuring out just how damaged she really was. This assessment was not one that she relished much.  
  
There wasn't a lot of bruising or swelling around her lip or her eye where the cut was and the bruise on her cheek was a nice mix of purple and blue edged with red. Her shoulder felt extremely stiff to the point where she had a hard time moving it while dressing and her right wrist was slightly swollen but nothing that a little rest and support wouldn't fix. Considering the fight and the way she had hit the deck she counted herself lucky that it wasn't hell of a lot worse.  
  
"Damaged goods." She said shaking her head and putting on socks and boots before pulling an ace bandage out of her bag before expertly wrapping her wrist like she had promised Riddick that she would do the night before. Before her little problem in the middle of the night.  
  
What the hell had set her off?  
  
She didn't even know. It was just a feeling; a feeling that something was very wrong and she had gone along blindly with it. The only problem was that in thinking about it now, she knew better. It was the same feeling she had gotten the night that Bret had died, almost instinct but not quite the same idea, it just was. It must have been a dream, she concluded finally, not wanting to think about it any more then she absolutely had to, just a lingering dream that had broke through into her waking thoughts and scared the hell out of her.  
  
Hindsight, she mused, was always a perfect 20/20.  
  
Jack didn't bother turning around as Riddick arrived back in their room. She knew it was him and didn't even flinch. "Thought you'd still be asleep." He said as she put the elasticised clip on her wrap to hold it in place. "You were dead to the world when I left."  
  
"Well I woke up didn't I?" She smiled and stood up moving her shoulder slightly and probing it with her fingers to try and get rid of the stiffness. "Where'd you go?" She asked as she turned around and shock registered on her face as she saw Candace glowering at her from Riddick's tight grasp. The teenager looked angry but it didn't look like she had tried to fight Riddick off, at least she was smart.  
  
"Had some business to take care of. Found this on the way back." He said closing and locking the door into their room before releasing the girl from his hold.  
  
Candace rubbed her shoulder where his fingers had gripped it and glowered between Riddick and Jack. But she was also afraid, behind all the defiance and the anger there was fear, Jack could see it and she had absolutely no doubt that Riddick could smell that same fear. She suddenly felt very tense. Something wasn't right with the whole situation.  
  
"What do you mean, you found her on the way back? Why did you bring her here? Why didn't you just take her back to the passenger's quarters" Jack said motioning for the girl to take the seat that she had just vacated and Candace almost ran to the seat as she eyed Riddick with suspicion, some of her fear fading as she put distance between herself and the much larger man.  
  
What had happened to the Candace that had first observed them in the docking bay? The big man grinned at the younger girl as Jack moved closer to him. Her father's stories about the big bad Riddick much really have made an impression on her before she had been taken away from him.  
  
"Bargained for her." He said the seemingly evil grin never leaving his face and she could see Candace growing nervous again. "She had no where to go but back here with me."  
  
"Stop it." She chided lightly, laying a hand on his arm before moving away and sitting on the bed. He acknowledged her touch with a fleeting look but then his attention focused on the girl in the chair again, the grin gone, a look of pure seriousness on his face. Something had made him very angry, she could feel it radiating out of him like heat. "What do you mean you bargained for her? Stop talking cryptically."  
  
"My mother's life for me." Candace said suddenly and Jack turned to look at her. It seemed that the girl had the same talent for words that her much larger friend had. Whatever she was trying to say, it didn't make much sense.  
  
"You want to run that one by me one more time?" She asked patiently waiting to hear the whole story.  
  
"Just what I said. That was the bargain, my mother's life for me." The muscles in the girl's jaw worked for a moment. "He put a blade to her throat. Now I belong to him. That was the deal that they made. That's why I'm back here." The look on her face was almost contemptuous.  
  
"You don't belong to anyone kid." Riddick said slowly but purposefully.  
  
"Oh gods!" Jack closed her eyes and shook her head slowly. "You put a shiv to that woman's throat? How do you know she's not going to say something to the Captain?"  
  
"My mom won't. She'll be happy to be rid of me. Probably thinks that I've gone off with someone who's going to treat me hell of a lot worse then she ever would. That'll make her plenty happy." The girl shrugged trying to pretend like she didn't care.  
  
"That doesn't explain what your business was Riddick." Jack turned slightly and looked at him again.  
  
"Later." He said and a fleeting tenderness crossed his face that received a smile from her in return. Candace stood up as Riddick dropped a small duffle bag at her feet and moved away from the two and into the bathroom. The door shut and lock, the shower started and Candace visibly relaxed. "I'll be going now, since I don't belong to him."  
  
"Riddick won't hurt you. I won't hurt you. No one else on this ship will hurt you." Jack said standing up and barring the doorway. "But there are rules and you're going to stay right where you are until Sam and I work out what to do with you." 


	11. Back To Hell

Well, I know it's been a while since I last posted but am feeling much relaxed and inspired after a nice long trip around the USA and seeing friends and family. Have a number of chapters written that are just going through a little editing.

Anyway, here is chapter 11. Hope you enjoy.

Kayla

Chapter 11: Back To Hell.

"Jack?" There was a knock on her door and Capitan Manor's voice could be heard clearly on the other side. Jack brushed a strand of hair out of the sleeping Candace's face and stood up, walking to the door.

"Yes sir?" She said opening the door, her voice quite conscious of the fact that her newest charge was sleeping.

"It's time to start the landing procedures." Captain Manor looked past her into the dimly lit room, his eyes passing over the sleeping form of the teenager and the still, quiet form of Riddick who looked back at him a small frown on his face. It seemed that even the man who appeared to be afraid of nothing didn't like that planet any more then his pilot did.

"I'll be right up." Jack nodded her acknowledgement of his statement.

"You'll be glad to hear that Danny won't be joining you in the cockpit. He's going to have to help John load our new cargo when we get down there." Captain Manor said. "We're going to be on that planet for between eight and twelve hours, be prepared."

"I already am." Jack tried to sound confident but was sure that she had failed miserably. Her voice sounded fake to her own ears, she didn't see how it could be anything but fake to anyone else's. It didn't help when the time they would be down their kept on creeping longer and longer.

"Good. When we get there, it's up to you if you want to leave the ship and take a look around or you can just sit tight and wait."

"Thanks sir. I'll let you know when I take my chair." Jack nodded and shut the door as the Captain left. She tried to ignore Riddick as she leaned against the door for a minute, feeling quite weak and more then a little afraid. Fear, she knew would be her worst enemy while she was on that planet and in the hours immediately after they left.

Jack grabbed her vest jacket and put it on, the zip catching slightly in her nervous hurry to do it up and she didn't seem to be able to get the stupid zip unstuck again. "Damn it!" She swore softly in her frustration and suddenly Riddick's hands had pushed hers aside and fixed the problem. Unlike her hands, she noticed, his were steady. But then, he was always steady, cool and calm.

"Take a deep breath Jack and pull yourself together. You're not going to be able to fly this ship if you're a nervous wreak." Riddick said as he laid a hand on the small of her back for the moment, the contact was meant to be reassuring before he stepped away and stretched. In his own strange way, Riddick was trying to make her feel better and she was silently thankful that he cared enough to try. "Leave her to sleep through the landing."

Jack nodded as she put on her headset. She set her jaw and threw him a spare headset as she reached for the door handle. "Answer me this time if I call? I might need a little bit of moral support."

"I'll be right next to you. Sounded like your Captain was hinting at seat availability when he stopped by. I think I might take him up on his offer." Riddick gave her a reassuring smile and put on the headset.

"Then Candace'll be alone when she does wake up. I'm not sure that's a good idea, leaving her I mean. Not after the shit she's been though over the past few hours." Jack looked down at Candace a frown passing across her face. She knew what it was like to wake up alone when you expected others to be around. It left you feeling empty and nervous and as much as she was worried about the girl's parentage, she didn't want her to feel like that.

"She's not you Jack. She gets no comfort from me being around, you on the other hand might need an unofficial co-pilot or as you put it, a little bit of moral support." He raised an eyebrow, as she seemed to think for a moment. If only he knew just how much his offer meant to her, but then he probably wouldn't be much impressed by her sentimentalities.

Jack nodded her consent and quickly scribbled a note before grabbing a couple of food bars out of her bag. She laid them on the table but didn't say anything as she left the room, her boots making thudding noises against the floor that were accompanied by the sound of Riddick's footsteps. Once she had been his shadow and now he was hers, a different sort of shadow but still a shadow.

"Starting pre-landing procedures." Jack said clearly as she pulled up her view screen but she could clearly see the desert planet through her window. "Planet Hell locked into the heading and all too clearly in sight sir. Standing by for further instructions."

"Continue on the present course and start landing. I will inform Dr. Johnston of our immanent arrival." Captain Manor's voice said.

"Formal eh?" Riddick said sounding amused as Jack quickly settled to her work.

"Only when he's in 'Captain' mode." Jack barely paused to looked at him as she worked, barely seeming to stop moving and her hands were flying around at some speed, it almost looked like instinct. "There's a green switch on your left to the right of two gray buttons, flick it will you, then press the two buttons simultaneously." She said sounding distracted. There wasn't a lot that could distract her when she was intent on her work, not even him, and this time she seemed to have a desperate need to get lost in that same work. It was as if her life depended on it.

"I don't see in color Jack."

"They're right below the third large leaver to your left." She pointed and he did as she asked. No, it wasn't her life that depended on it, it was her sanity.

* * *

Candace woke up to find herself quite alone in the room that Jack shared with Riddick. There was a red light flashing above the door, which she was sure, didn't mean that anything good was happening, that or they were landing but when she tired to open the door she found it was locked. She was a fucking prisoner so it seemed. She gave the door one more, sharp tug before gritting her teeth and stamping her foot hard against the floor much like a young child out of temper.

"Fuck you!" She yelled at the top of her lungs and then slumped down into a chair at the table feeling slightly defeated. Why the hell did people think that they could just leave her all the time? God she was sick of it, always being the one that was left behind or forgotten about.

There were two bars laying on what looked like a note. One bar was a protein and vitamin bar and the other a chocolate bar, the note advised eating the protein bar first and also explained that her new guardians were off landing the ship. So that was what the red light was about. She was just surprised that she hadn't woken up earlier.

"Some people have all the fun." She muttered as she took a bite of the protein bar, it tasted like moist cardboard. She made a face and then took a careful look at the wrapping knowing that she had to somehow force the rest of the bar down her throat because she might not get to eat again for a while. That wasn't to say that she thought that Jack was going to starve her, she was pretty sure that the pilot wouldn't do that but she wasn't going to risk it anyway.

At least the note said that one of them would get her after _The Aurora _had landed. That at least was something; she only hoped that it was Jack and not the big convict. She had heard far too much about him from her father, her father had never chased him but he had spoken about him and none of it was particularly comforting stuff. She was sure that her father would have loved a shot at catching Richard B. Riddick but because of her and her safety he never had.

That wasn't to say that part of her wasn't very grateful that Riddick had saved her from one of her mother's rages, she was, but that didn't mean that she could trust him. She knew how he killed, she had been told that he didn't understand mercy and she wasn't sure that she would be allowed to ever try and find her father again, especially after she had told Jack that her father was a merc.

Gods, she could be stupid sometimes!

Candace looked at the floor, her toes tracing imaginary patterns on the floor as she thought about her father. She missed him badly. But then her mother always had complained that she was her father's daughter more then she was hers. To be honest that thought had always made Candace proud. She could think of far worse things to be then her father's daughter.

He had let her be athletic and supported her as she jumped between sports trying to work out which sports were the best for her. He had taught her how to protect herself, when to hide or when to run or fight back. He made her feel safe and loved, protected. It didn't matter anymore, he wasn't there, she had only herself to count on.

She popped the last of the protein bar into her mouth and chewed it as best as she could. She turned on the sink and got herself a glass of water, which she nearly spilt on her top as the ship lurched obviously, hitting the atmosphere of a planet. Whatever the hell was going on it was not going smoothly and that did little to make her feel better.

Whatever this planet was, it scared the hell out of her newest guardian, Jack that was. Candace smiled, she had heard a lot when they thought she had fallen asleep, before real sleep took her. She had even heard the disgruntled conversation with the ship's security officer and Captain after Jack had found them to talk about her. At the moment, she was in Jack's care and custody, which was until the reached the planet that the ship would end up docking at; at that point things would be re-evaluated.

If they couldn't or wouldn't let her find her father then she would probably be put into care and that was not a thought that she relished much. She almost would have rather had a job working with the rather loose C named woman onboard the fucking ship then go into care.

Her mind wondered back to the planet, wondering what it would be like, not wanting to have to wait to set foot on real ground again but there was something not right about that place, something had happened there, death and monsters had been mentioned and both Jack and Riddick had been there. As they had spoken Cadence almost liked the man she feared. Jack talked quickly with a nervous quality to her voice that didn't seem in character and he just interceded with clam quite words of comfort, protection and reassurance.

What, that was if he had changed, changed the heartless monster into the man who seemed to care so much about the pilot? And why couldn't Jack see what she saw?

She took a bite of the chocolate bar, thankful that it took away the taste of mushy cardboard in her mouth. Could a man like that change? Her father had told her that it was possible, not probable but possible none the less, for anyone who wanted to change to change but that there was always a reason why.

Was Jack Riddick's reason why or was there more to it?

The pilot had been so adamant that she had nothing but platonic feelings for the big man but Candace still wasn't convinced. After all what had that touch of his arm been about if not an expression of that feeling that she was denying? Why was Jack living in an en-suite room with only a double bed if she wasn't in the least attracted to the dude?

It wasn't like she saw Riddick giving up the chance to sleep in a bed just because Jack only thought of him as a friend or protector. That and there was no way at all that she could think of that Richard B. Riddick would hang around to protect a girl that he didn't have an interest in right? Or did she have them totally wrong?

Candace shook her head to clear it of her own thoughts as the ship lurched for a second time and it hit solid ground. There were too many questions where these people were concerned and not enough answers and it was enough to drive her crazy. She knew she couldn't even trust her judgement of character at that moment in time, at least not with Riddick. Her father had once called him a master of disguise and she was more then sure that he had been speaking about more then just the man's physical appearance.

She read the note that had been left for her again and then looked thoughtfully at Jack's duffle bag. If she was going to go up top, maybe get to explore a little bit of the surface then she figured that she had better change, only thing was she didn't have any of her clothes yet so instead she decided to rummage through Jack's things and found not only a change of clothes that fit alright but also an armoury that she hadn't been expecting.

What was Jack? She found herself asking herself as she looked at the arrangement of weapons. Was she a killer too?

* * *

"That was not what I call a smooth landing hotshot." Captain Manor's voice said over the headsets and Jack almost let herself laugh because of all the pent up nerves and the sheer irony. Compared with the last landing she had experienced on her first visit to the planet, her landing had been like landing on a feather bed. So she just let herself laugh silently for a moment, wondering if Riddick was remembering it too.

"You couldn't have done better yourself! My hands are shaking so badly right now..." Jack answered him as she looked over at Riddick for some form of reassurance. He gave her a fleeting but rare smile and she nodded, it had been what she was looking for. He knew what she was thinking about.

"Knew you could do it Jackie. The Captain would be criminal if he didn't give you a raise after that" Sam's voice said from behind her. "What do you say Captain sir? A raise for the pilot?"

"He gave me my job back, I'm not about to push it again, yet." Jack said but a laugh did escape from her lips before she seemed to be able to stop it. This was part of working with these particular people that she liked the most, even in the face of a very bad situation they could laugh. It was rare that there wasn't some sort of good-natured banter going on between members of the crew and the Captain seemed to have no trouble joining in.

"Good choice Jack." Manor's amused voice chuckled. "Don't want to push your luck too soon."

"No sir, my luck is fast running out, remember I'm back on planet hell when I'd rather not be." She shook her head, the joke hidden in reality but at least she could joke about it, they had to give that much to her didn't they?

"We've got a nice blue sun up and I was wondering if you wanna come outside with me for a small look around." Sam said, leaning on the back of Jack's chair and looking out of the main cockpit window.

"I've got to go check in on the kid. Make sure she hasn't got into any trouble cause I'll be surprised if that landing didn't wake her up." Jack said paling, she wasn't quite ready to face the surface yet though she could quite clearly see it through the blue haze outside of the cockpit window.

"Hotshot's punking out." She heard Danny's voice mocking her over the headset and she bristled, what was it with that guy, he was just asking for her to prove him wrong. With the rest of the crew the banter was good-natured, why did it always have to be different with Becker? Damn him, when it came down to it, she really didn't care.

"I dunno Sam." She tried to ignore his comment but she knew it wasn't working all that well, Danny knew how to get her riled up.

"Take a gun and a blaster, bring the kid with you." Sam smiled. "Call it facing your fears and then you can meet the dumb fucks that have been living here. See the crash sight again, get over the past, it got over you, you know."

"You beginning to sound like a fucking psychoanalyst or therapist." Riddick interjected and Jack silently thanked him, she hadn't been able to come up with a come back for that one.

"I'll see you outside in fifteen." Sam ignored Riddick's comments but there was a smile on her face when she left the cockpit. Sam knew she had won. There was something in the way that the security officer challenged Jack that made it nearly impossible for her not to accept it.

Jack closed her eyes after she had finished turning off the things that needed to be turned off and leaned back in her chair. She concentrated on her breathing for a while, a steady in and out, in and out. She knew she was panicking but couldn't seem to get herself in line so she just stopped fighting it and made herself be still. If her head wanted to blow off then it could, it just meant that she didn't have to deal with shit anymore.

She knew what was outside all to well. She could picture the terrain in her minds eye without needing to leave the safety of the ship. She knew the heat, knew how hard it could be to breath at times, knew what lay beneath the surface. She could see the crashed ship as she had seen it last time, she could see the canyon where she had nearly lost her life, she could even see the map of the small settlement in her head if she thought closely about it. She shuddered and opened her eyes, knowing that Riddick was watching her carefully.

"I guess..." She said but her voice trailed off to nothing.

"If you want to or feel you should look around, then do it." Riddick said pealing off his headset and watching her closely for a reaction. She nodded and stood up.

"Will you come?" She asked when she reached the doorway.

"I'll come." He answered.

Less then five minutes later Jack had placed her weapons on the table and was faced with a much irritated Candace. The girl watched her pick out a gun and an energy blaster before picking up Jack's favorite handgun and testing it's weight much like an expert would.

"You're not coming." Jack said flatly and she sounded strained.

"Why the bloody hell not? I can handle myself better then you think." Candace snapped and glared at Jack who glared right back. Riddick looked between the two and shook his head; besides the difference in looks Candace could have been Jack at a younger age. They were both stubborn and hot-headed but Candace was just plain angry at the world unlike Jack who had just been a survivalist from the start, she had seemed to have gotten over her anger a while before he had ever met her.

"Can you handle that gun?" Riddick's voice stopped Jack from snapping back at the girl.

"Of course I can. Dad taught me to shoot when I was twelve. Said I had to know encase anyone with a grudge came after us." She nodded at him but put the semi-automatic handgun back down on the table. She didn't want to make him nervous and she was sure that Jack had told him about her father being a merc.

"I take it you've come across a lot of people with a grudge on you?" He gave her a look that she couldn't interpret and she scowled at him.

"None of them had a grudge against me and I've never had to shoot anyone." She snapped. "Dad got to them first I was just a target because of who he was. You know how that goes, the whole point was that I was prepared."

"You stay close and shoot if we tell you to shoot got it?" He growled at her and Jack opened her mouth to protest but he gave her a look that stopped her. "I've got it covered Jack." Was all he said and though Jack didn't look happy, she didn't look like she was about to try and contradict Riddick, for better or worse, Jack trusted Riddick though the teenager obviously didn't get it.

"Do you understand what he just said Candace?" Jack said looking more worried then she did angry.

"I got it. I'm not thick you know, I have a brain." The kid said sarcastically.

"Don't get lippy Candace." Jack snapped.

The teenager shrugged and looked at Riddick. "What's out there so bad that it's got you so spooked anyway?"

"You wouldn't understand kid, you weren't there when it was dark." Jack shrugged, she didn't exactly want to have to explain the whole stupid thing to the kid.

"And the dark has what to do with it?"

"Hell of a lot." Jack answered back.

"There are monsters out there with less of a conscience then I've got. They're what you have to worry about now kid." Riddick looked straight at the teenager, his mercury eyes deadly serious and it sent chills up and down Jack's spine.


	12. The Surface

Hey all, I figured that it was time that I posted again, been struggling a little with this chapter and chapter 13, I can never seem to get the wording the way I want it so I figured that I'd let ya'll decide if it was alright or not instead of continuing to try and mess with it.

Hope you enjoy.

Kayla

* * *

Chapter 12: The Surface.

It would have been a lie if Jack were to say that she hadn't noticed the look of triumphant amusement that was quickly masked on Sam's face as she left the ship about a step and a half behind Riddick. A comfortable distance, close enough to use him as a shield from what she was feeling without anyone besides the two of them realizing it.

She put her sunglasses on, another barrier between her and the rest of the crew, and looked around her, on the surface she looked calm and relaxed even a little unemotional about the whole thing but inside she was anything but calm and relaxed, she was more like a nervous wreck. A nervous wreck shielded by a brick wall made of human flesh.

"Looks the same." She whispered to Riddick though she was talking more to herself then anyone else as she took a couple of steps away from him and onto the sand. She squatted down and took a handful of the sand into her fist, letting it sit there for a moment in her clenched fist as if weighing it before letting it slide through her fingers.

It felt like sand, what the hell else had she been expecting it to feel like?

"The crash site is a couple of miles from here, that way." Captain Manor was suddenly at her shoulder pointing to his left. "There's a couple of sand-buggies onboard if you want to use one to take a look around. I want the ship off this planet in eight hours; that gives you roughly seven to do what you want with."

"I dunno." She shook her head, her voice barely more then a whisper. Her hand was still resting in the sand and she knew that most of the crew would be watching her by now. She didn't care! She stood up slowly and wiped the dust from the sand off her hands, seeing memories clearer then she ever wanted to see them again but knowing that she couldn't get rid of them.

It was time to face her past, the past had got over her and it was time that she got over it, or at least she hoped that she could get over it and if not, maybe she would just be able to settle with it, make a peace agreement.

Darkness settled in on her mind, she could hear the beat of wings and the screeches and whoops. She could feel again the mind numbing fear. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply thankful that no one else was talking. It was hard to breath, just like before, she left like she had taken a nice long run and not been given the chance to catch her breath again.

A nice long run...

All of her muscles were bunched, ready to do just that if it came down to it. She was ready for just about anything at that moment as she pushed away threatening memories and was simply still. If she didn't think about it then it couldn't be as bad as her mind seemed to want to make her remember it being. At least, that was what she told herself.

If anyone found it hard to stand and let the pilot revisit her memories, with her sad frown, her small involuntary shudders, then it had to be Riddick, Candace found herself thinking. He had been there too; he would be remembering things that he probably didn't like as much as Jack didn't like them. The haunted look on her new guardian's face was just about enough to freak her out and from the tight muscles in Riddick's jaw-line, he wasn't all that happy either but he stood still so, so did she. Even she found it strange the way that she was taking her lead from him all of a sudden.

Jack turned around and walked back to the crew, her protector and newest charge. The kid looked nervous and Riddick was tense, his whole body seeming to scream caution. "You alright?" He asked her and she knew that his eyes, though concealed under his dark welding goggles had swept over her face. She nodded slowly and smiled faintly reassuring herself as much as she was him.

"Stay here and don't let Candace out of your sight?" It was a question, a request, made with a hand laid on his arm more because she needed contact with him at that moment then for any other reason and he tolerated it, her shielded eyes searching his face for that moment as she gathered strength from him.

"You're going back to _The Hunter-Gratzner_?" He didn't look happy as he turned his head to follow her movements.

"I think so." She nodded again but the movement wasn't as sure and defined as before, like she had no idea if it was the right thing to do or not.

"Then leave the kid with Sam, you're not going back there alone." It was final; she knew it was but the stubborn streak in her made her argue back.

"Sam's got a job to do; she can't be saddled with a kid doing that job. Make sure she doesn't get herself in any trouble Riddick? Please?"

"Now that we're here I have a job to do too, you're more likely to get your ass into trouble on this planet then she is." He said the tone of his voice and the look on his face making it clear that his stance wasn't going to be changed by her arguments. "Leave her with Sam."

After a moment or two of a standoffish sort of silence she backed down and nodded; glad to be honest that he didn't agree to her request but not sure that Sam was the best person to be leaving Candace with. Sam was known to get distracted when she was working and either Candace would be the distraction or she would forget about the teenager completely.

"Don't worry about Candace; she'll keep me company while I deal with whatever I have to deal with." Sam said putting an end to her worry about the teenager. "After all, you said that they didn't come out in the light."

"Alright." She nodded knowing she was out numbered in that particular argument. "Just because those things don't come out into the light doesn't mean that they aren't still dangerous, you have to make sure you stay in the light." Jack shook her head.

"Sure I couldn't just go with you guys?" Candace looked at the pilot pleadingly though she knew that she was more likely to get an okay from Riddick then Jack. The idea of tagging along with the security officer after having avoided her and gone out of bounds so often really wasn't all that appealing to her. For all she knew, Sam could have it against her for all the trouble she had caused.

"No!" Riddick and Jack turned and looked at her, saying the words at the same time and making Sam laugh.

"You sure that you guys can't read each other's minds?" Sam asked with a shake of her head.

"She has a gun Sam and she knows how to use the thing. Please leave her armed." Jack shook her head in acknowledgement of what Sam had said before going back inside _The Aurora,_ Riddick following closely behind her.

A little under ten minutes later Jack was sitting shotgun in the four person sand-buggy that Riddick was driving across the sand, away from _The Aurora_ and closer and closer to the crashed ship, _The Hunter-Gratzner_. It was hard to believe that as a fifteen year old she had had no direction and now, gods, she was a pilot on a huge cargo ship and she had Riddick. The crash had given her all of that, as much as she hated it, she understood that fact.

She looked over at her stony faced companion and frowned slightly. Things would have been so different for them both if _The Hunter-Gratzner_ hadn't crashed. Riddick would either be in Slam or on the run from mercs like he was now but he would never have gotten to know her or Imam, never joined the human race again. She on the other hand would probably have jumped around foster homes and orphanages for three years before being set loose on the world. That or become one of the known universe's many runaways, running had been in her plan from before they even put her on the ship in the first place.

Had things worked out for the best?

"Do you ever regret it?" She found herself asking Riddick.

"What?"

"Getting saddled with a fifteen year old girl who got you into more trouble then she was worth." Jack clarified.

"Is that your assessment of the situation? That you were more trouble then you were worth?"

"Well it's the truth isn't it?" She looked over at him and raised her eyebrows in question but Riddick didn't answer. She hadn't honestly expected him to. "I mean, I almost got you caught or killed on more then one occasion between the age of fifteen and twenty."

"Only three times." He shrugged as if it didn't matter at all.

"Yeah, three times too many and the last time you almost died." She looked away from him again and out over the rolling sand dunes.

"You want to talk about this now?"

"I was just thinking about what would have happened to us if we hadn't crashed here all those damned years ago. What would have happened to everyone." She said as she saw sunlight glint off metal in the distance. "Things would have been so different and not only for me."

"What does that have to do with regrets?"

"It just does. I mean, if Imam hadn't left me with you then you would have left me with Imam. I've always figured that that would have been the case. I also know that you would have gotten away from Johns eventually and I would have been sent into foster care or more likely would have turned runaway if the ship hadn't crashed down here. Carolyn would probably be piloting a ship like _The Aurora_ by now, Imam and his boys would have reached New Mecca and gone home, Paris would be off travailing and maybe Shazza and Zeke would have found a home somewhere." She said. "I don't have any regrets about what happened because you handed me a life but I'm wondering if you had any regrets because, in a way, I took away the life that you were used to."

"No point in bringing up the past Jack. There's no point looking at what ifs because it only makes you wish that things had happened differently." He wasn't about to swell her head and tell her that having a dependant could give you a purpose, that he had been changed in a way that wasn't particularly bad because of it.

Jack nodded. That seemed to be a clear enough reply for her. Everyone had regrets, had she thought that Riddick would be any different or that he wouldn't regret her? She shuddered.

The wreak of _The Hunter-Gratzner_ came quickly into view and neither of them said a word as Riddick stopped the vehicle and they looked at what was left of the ship. Jack was the first to get out and take a closer look at the shattered hull of the passenger vessel. It was strange to see it again; even worse were the accompanying memories. People; Shazza, Zeke, Paris, Carolyn and the darkness and monsters. She suddenly felt quite sick.

What had Kelly called it, the first time that they had spoken about the events that had changed the course of her life?

Survivor's guilt.

Well, she was feeling that guilt rather keenly as she stood there, her green eyes travailing over the wreckage. It all looked a little older but otherwise it hadn't changed much, she could even see the solar sandkat where they had left it, obviously the crash investigators hadn't needed to move it. She wondered for a moment just how close a look that those people had actually taken at the crash sight. How much of the true story they had patched together.

Jack chewed on the inside of her lip as she moved around the ship, walking up and down the banks that the ship had made when it plowed through the sand during the crash landing, till she reached the smashed up back end, the entrance into the place where the cryo-chambers had once lined the walls. It was dark inside but she was still a good eight feet away.

Slowly she moved forward, her feet being forced to walk, step-by-step, closer to the gaping opening but before she got much closer Riddick's fingers encircled her arm and she stopped. Jack turned and looked at him for a moment as if woken up once more from her trance.

"It's dark in there." He said and let the implications in his words settle in for her. She looked up at him, her lips slightly parted as she sucked in air, her eyes wide under her sunglasses and her face slightly pale. She had been so lost in her memories, her thoughts that she hadn't even thought about the possibility that something might still be lurking in that ship.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize." He said, even he could see that she hadn't been thinking.

She nodded and licked her lip, her tongue lingering for a moment on the healing split as she took her gun from her side and made to move on again but he wasn't letting her go. Jack frowned, her brow creasing as she turned to look at him again. "What?"

"You wanna go in there?" She nodded.

"It's called closer Riddick." He let out a low, dry laugh that seemed to taper off into nowhere.

"There's no such thing as closer Jack." He said his voice sharp. "Wait here, I'll be back."

Nervous, she watched as Riddick walked into the ship and then was forced to wait. She hated waiting, hated even more the fear and uncertainty that was building up inside of her. If she had to wait much longer then she was going to chicken out! What was taking him so long anyway?

"Fuck this." She whispered and strode toward the crashed ship; her feet carried her across the warm sand and into the edge of the gapping hole with a confidence that she wasn't feeling. It was very dimly lit, almost dark, but not quite, she could still make out certain shapes sand and dust littered the floor and packed up against the sides of the ship, filling the holes in the hull and suffocating the light.

She could see the shapes of old cryo-chambers, there wasn't a lot about the ship's interior that she didn't remember clearly that wasn't there. A few things had changed, been moved by a strong and reckless source. Deep down she knew it had been one of the creatures but she didn't want to think about it, after all she had seen one of them fly out of the ship as a fifteen year old.

She tested the weight of the gun in her hand; let herself feel comforted because it was there, because she knew that in her hands it was lethal. There was a clicking noise to her left and she spun round, the gun pointed and ready to use but there was nothing there to use it on but an empty cryo-chamber and hanging tubing and wires.

Damn she was paranoid!

But at least she had a right to be.

The nameplate above the cryo-chamber had rusted and the name was now unreadable, a few feet away, laying across the floor, broken glass door still open was the cryo-chamber that she had been freed from by Zeke. There were tubes and wires everywhere, the remnants of the people that had rummaged around in the dark. It all made her think, about just how lucky they had been to get off that planet alive, but she knew that she wouldn't have made it without the protection of both Riddick and Carolyn Fry. Without Carolyn, Riddick would never have come back for her and Imam.

Jack missed her.

Before she could stop herself, she had turned on her heel and walked back outside, her breathing a little ragged as she tried to pull herself together. God, she hated memories sometimes. She shook her head to clear it before returning to the near darkness, gods, she didn't know why she went back, she didn't exactly want to but something drove her forward, that and she still had no idea where Riddick had disappeared off to. This time she went a little deeper into the bowls of the decapitated ship, slowly, one foot step at a time, always careful and cautious, the gun slightly raised as her eyes tried to adjust to the darkness.

"Don't move any closer Jack." Riddick's voice said from a few feet in front of her and to her left. She froze and let her eyes adjust to the lack of light. She could just make out his back and just in front of him was a grayish shape of a fully-grown monster. She tensed; she had just stepped into her nightmare. Even with Riddick there, it was too familiar for her to feel in the least bit comforted.

Terror gripped her as it make it's strange whooping scream. Not even the fact that Riddick was between it and her; Riddick who had killed those monsters, outsmarted them, could stop the fear from flooding her body. Flowing through her body like adrenaline. Sweat trickled slowly down her spine, between her breasts, down her neck making her hair cling to the back of her neck in an uncomfortable way and her breath caught in her throat. She could almost smell her own fear and she knew that Riddick would be able to sense it and smell it too and that only made her feel worse.

"Back slowly off." Riddick's voice told her as the creature took a tentative step away from Riddick, it's head sweeping in her direction as it made its scream again. She knew it could see her, knew that it knew exactly where she was and what she was doing and it made her want to be sick. All it had to do was rush her and it would all be over; the gun raised in her own defense would not even be fired. She could see it happening, her imagination running the exact moment of her death and it only made that fear worse.

She was not ready to die.

"I don't think that I can." The words were soft, weak and afraid as her muscles seemed to cease holding her captive on the spot where she stood.

"Move Jack now!"

The command made her move, her eyes never strayed from the creature although she could hear Riddick a few steps in front of her backing off as well. And then it was his broad back in front of her, not blocking her view of the creature but she was pretty sure that the thing would have a damn hard time seeing her though Riddick's imposing bulk. It screamed again and made a series of clicking noises. She shuddered.

The creature watched them go and then another joined it, coming up from a huge hole in the floor. _"Shit!"_ Jack thought as she nearly fell over her own feet because she was too focused on the back of Riddick's neck to think about where her own damn feet were going and the two creatures advanced on them but his hand had reached back and gripped her t-shirt making sure that she was steady on her feet again. "Riddick?"

"Just keep moving." His words were slow and deliberate, meant to signify pace and calm.

Her feet felt like they were packed in lead as she fought the instinct that told her to turn around and run. '_They are afraid of sunlight; sunlight would kill them, run to the sunlight.'_ Her own voice in her head screamed. She knew that soon the creatures wouldn't be able to move any closer because of the light but she also knew that she was afraid, knew that they would stop advancing cautiously the minute that their movement was anything but slow and steady.

There was only one thing left in her mind when she finally felt the extra heat from light on her back and that was the word _"RUN!"_ Jack spun on her heel and took off without thinking about where she was going or what she would found. All that she knew was that her feet were hitting the ground rapidly; that her arms were pumping at her sides and she was going as fast as she could possibly make herself go, maybe faster then she had ever ran before.

It had all been a mistake, a giant mistake! She should never have come back to the ship, never should have set foot on the sand, never should have come back to that planet and now she had no idea what to do so she just kept running, giving herself over to the base instinct that told her to run from danger and also told her that danger was laying just behind her, below her, all around her.

She was a fucking wreak!

Jack didn't know how long she had ran before she was finally tackled, her body twisting as she flew through the air only to land on top of Riddick in the sand. She just lay there, breathing heavily, his arms tight around her body, the sun in her eyes, on her face. She closed her eyes but made herself open them again as the image of those creatures crept back into her head. She was shaking.

"When I tell you to do something Jack, you do it." Riddick said finally after their breathing had calmed down and his arms had relaxed their grip slightly. The majority of her trembling had stopped though she still felt a little shaky.

"Don't, just don't." She said rolling off of him and standing up, moving away form him. She knew he was right behind her from the minute that she started walking toward the buggy but that didn't mean that she had to talk to him yet. She couldn't talk to him just yet, couldn't make herself form words.

"Jack!" The command in his voice made her freeze on the spot.

"I think we should go." She said her voice strained.

"Not before we talk."

"I gotta get out of here, I have to! We can talk later." She squeezed her eyes shut tight as he caught up with her and stood in front of her. She didn't want to see him, she just didn't. His arms gripped the top of her own arms and she could feel the heat resonating off of him. "I admit it alright? It was a mistake, it was all a big mistake, I made a huge fucking mistake! Can we please go now?"

"Jack?"

"What?" She said, every muscle in her body tense.

"Jack? Look at me." She shook her head and turned her head farther away from him in sheer defiance of his wishes. She didn't want to see him, not then, not when she was feeling that weak, that stupid. "Jack." His voice was insistent and quiet, all the force in his tone gone.

"What?" She said, finally opening her eyes and looking up at him but as she did a single tear escaped and slipped slowly down her cheek, her defiance gone in one terrible moment. Her expressive green eyes looked up into his face, her fear was there and obvious. She was breathing heavily and he knew that it was as much to do with the fear as the atmosphere. Just standing there admitting her own defeat was hurting her.

"It would not have gotten to you." He said slowly and carefully so that he knew that she heard his words. She nodded and slowly her breathing returned to a pace near normal and she relaxed, letting herself take a step closer to him and wrapping her arms around him.

She knew that it wasn't exactly the reaction that Riddick had been expecting because of the tightening of his muscles as she hugged him but slowly he released her arms and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She needed him, she knew it and he knew it but she wondered if it made a real difference.

"Are you alright?" He asked. She shook her head as she started to tremble again; the fear wasn't letting go, just holding on to the edges waiting for her to put her guard down so that it could take over again.

"It was a mistake; it was all a big fucking mistake." Her words caused him to let out a low laugh that rumbled through his body, shaking her's slightly considering she still had her arms wrapped tightly around him.

"You've already said that once." He said.

"Well it's fucking true. God damn it! I've got shit for brains or something don't I? I mean, all I ever seem to do is get myself into a fucking, God damned mess!"

"You've got quite a mouth on you Jack. Ever thought about anything slightly nicer to use to emphases your words?"

"No, those words emphases nicely enough for me, thank you very much. Anyway, you're the one who taught me most of my choice vocabulary. If I remember correctly you taught me a few words quite a bit worse then those." She answered him back feeling slightly better as he laughed again. It seemed that she had a knack for making one of the most feared men in the known systems laugh and it made her smile. That was a talent that she could at least be proud of.

"They would not have gotten to you Jack. I would not have let them." She nodded her acknowledgement of his words again but she also knew why they didn't comfort her like she was sure he meant them to.

She knew that he could kill one full-grown adult, she had seen him but she remembered seeing him after he had taken on two, he had almost died them, if Carolyn hadn't gone back for him, he would have. And the fact that he would have tired to take on two again, for her, that he could have gotten himself killed... Even the thought of another person dieing because of her or for her made her shudder involuntarily.

"I don't have any regrets. Not to do with you." The words were said practically as a whisper but they had been said and they caused a smile to cross her face.

"Let's go back to the ship." She said pulling away and giving him a faint smile.

They backtracked, walking wordlessly alongside one another. His strides as always a good bit longer then hers but she kept up none the less. Keeping up with Riddick was still second nature to her so it seemed and that little thrill she had gotten from finding out that he didn't regret her was still running up and down her spine.

Gods, she really was seventeen again instead of fucking twenty-two, feeling like a kid that had just been handed millions. She even had a real smile on her face when she saw Sam and Candace pull up in a sand buggy next to where they had left their own. But that smile faded rather fast, turning into a frown of concern.

She watched as Candace jumped out and Sam followed her, both the teenager and the adult looking around the seemingly deserted remains of the ship. Jack knew that Sam would have already noted the fact that her and Riddick didn't seem to be there but then, she probably thought that they were inside instead of a couple of hundred yards or so away. The security officer wouldn't think that Jack might have done a runner that left them farther away from _The Hunter-Gratzner _then they had planned.

The thought made her heart skip a beat. If Sam thought that they were inside she would have no problem leading the teenager into the damned ship. She didn't understand the dangers, she didn't know what Jack knew, she didn't know that there were creatures waiting inside there for someone to make that same mistake.

"Jack?" She heard Candace's yell carried toward her but it was faint, number one the girl was yelling into the dark opening and number two she was still a good number of yards away from them not that Sam had noticed yet. Jack quickened her pace, her mouth going completely dry as the girl circled the wreck and peered curiously into the back end, calling her name again. The girl seemed to consider her options for a minute before taking a step closer, only a couple of feet from actually entering the ship.

"Shit." She said as she broke into a sprint. "Candace get away from there!" She yelled running the final few yards faster then she thought she could and pulled the sixteen year old away from the entrance to the artificial cave almost aggressively. "Never go into the dark on this planet." She growled perhaps a little too threateningly in the teenager's ear as Riddick jogged over to the sand buggy a frown on his own face.

"Jeeze!" Candace looked at her with disgust and a little bit of fear. "What the hell is up with you? You're covered in dust and acting like a fucking moron. You know all you had to do was yell, you didn't have to throw me about like that, I would have moved for myself. You don't think I have enough bruises already or something?"

"Watch your mouth kid." Sam snapped. "Why are you covered in dust Jack? I thought you'd be in there having a look around."

"That tends to happen when you get tackled in the middle of a run." Jack said dryly looking at Riddick who was loading a few old duffle bags into the back of the sand buggy. _Where the hell had he got those from?_ The thought crossed her mind quickly before she turned her thoughts back to the reprimand that she was supposed to be giving Candace. There would be time to question Riddick later. "You do not go into the dark on this planet Candace. Those monsters that Riddick told you about, they live in the dark and they're just waiting for you to make the mistake of getting too close."

"Did you see something Jack?" Sam asked suspiciously eyeing the ship.

"More then I wanted to." Jack admitted and before Sam could press she shook her head slowly grateful that Sam picked up the warning and nodded. "Come on, lets get back to _The Aurora_. I have a few things that I want to say to that stupid fuck Johnston."

"I bet you do." Sam nodded as Jack jumped shotgun and Candace got in the back almost automatically, not seeming to mind that the teenager preferred the ship's pilot to her.

"I know that I'm going to regret it pretty quickly if you don't get us the hell out of here Riddick." Jack said as she sat down and he nodded a smirk crossing his face as the buggy shot forward, Sam's buggy following not too far behind them.


	13. Because Of Doctor Johnston

Hey all and welcome to chapter 13. Thank you all so much for the reviews, it's always nice to get them and see what you all think. Thanks for the positive comments and praise, it always helps to know that people are enjoying what you write, it makes it easier to write it. A big thanks and shout out to Pendragon4 who not only has been a very faithful reviewer but has also helped me out with my spelling, grammar and other little bits and pieces on this chapter and other. Thanks so much!

Anyway, on to chapter 13, drop me a line and tell me what you think.

Kayla

Chapter 13: Because Of Doctor Johnston.

Dr. Johnston was sitting in the ship's main meeting room after he had supervised the transportation of the creature from the lab to one of the ship's cargo bays and the Captain and his crew, bar of course their informant, were still none the wiser to Beau's presence. _The Aurora's _Captain seemed to him like a nice enough man, cordial and vaguely interested in what they had found on that planet but not overly demanding when it came to information.

Dr. Johnston however was more interested in the ship's pilot. From what his informant had told him, she was an original survivor of _The Hunter-Gratzner_ crash. That she had encountered the beasts when the planet had been covered in darkness, when creatures like Beau were free to roam and to kill. If the girl would let herself be questioned without force, he was sure that she would be a wealth of information but his informant had warned him that she now had fear of the creatures that went far beyond sense. To be honest, he didn't blame her for it either.

"So tell me about your pilot. Who is she?" Dr. Johnston asked after the pleasantries were over, folding his hands and looking intently at the Captain. Captain Manor frowned and for a minute Dr. Johnston was sure that he was going to refuse to talk about the girl. Maybe the Captain didn't even know who she was.

"I take it that you know that she's not a stranger to this planet?" The Captain probed, Dr. Johnston nodded and wondered how much information that Captain Manor would give him. "Then you'll know that she's already given a statement to the proper authorities." So that was how it was going to be. He could read the statements but not ask questions.

"Yes I read it. It was quite interesting really." He saw Captain Manor frown again; obviously the other man had read the file and wouldn't have agreed with his assessment. All he had to do was push a little more and maybe the result would be what he wanted. "The descriptions that she gave of the creatures was spot on, I was really very impressed." He smiled. "I should greatly like the chance to talk to her before the flight has ended, I would like to see if she could give me any behavioral insights into the beast. She's the only one who has seen them in their natural environment of darkness. The holy man wouldn't talk to us and well, Riddick isn't exactly someone that I would like to meet, let alone try and dig up."

"That's entirely up to Jack." The Captain said firmly but a quiet and knowledgeable smile appeared on the older man's face that made the scientist wonder what he knew that he wasn't about to tell him.

"Where is she now?" He inquired wondering if he could find some way to corner her and question her sooner rather then later. Corner her before the word went out that he was searching for her and why.

"As far as I know she's at the crash site of _The Hunter-Gratzner_." Captain Manor said. "There's one more thing that you need to know when it comes to Jack. She has a friend who has presumed the role of protector in her life and who is also aboard my ship with my expressed permission but he is not on the ship's roles as by her own request. I would advise that you do not distress her in his presence or cross him, he's not known to be passive, especially when it comes to her."

"A man who takes his job seriously or a lover?" Dr. Johnston frowned and looked over his shoulder as his assistant walked into the room. The thought of using force to make her talk to them had already crossed his mind but he knew that if she had a 'friend' with her then it was unlikely that force could be used.

"The first or both, I'm not sure."

"A paid thug?" He couldn't help but be angered by the woman next to him. She had no right to open her mouth and the look he shot her told her so in no uncertain terms.

"Not this man." The Captain shook his head.

"Kirsten Leal, Captain Tex Manor. Captain Manor, Kirsten Leal, my research assistant." The Doctor made introductions and Kirsten smiled politely at the Captain but it was obvious that she had something more on her mind then introductions.

"Everything alright?" Captain Manor asked.

"Just fine thank you Captain." Kirsten answered him. "Your crew really has been quite helpful, a little nosey but helpful. I'm just here to deliver a file. The file you wanted Dr. Johnston." She was blunt as she handed her team leader a plain looking file marked in inverted commas '_Beau'_ and made to leave the room.

"Would you care to join us Miss Leal?" Captain Manor said as she reached the doorway and smiled at the Doctor.

"I'm afraid that I have other responsibilities to tend to before _The Aurora_ departs sir but thank you for your kind offer. It was nice to make your acquaintance. Dr. Johnston do I have your leave to go sir?" The 'sir' on the end felt forced, as if she was making some sort of point and he bristled.

"I'll call if I need anything else." He said not bothering to look at her again, and she left the room as two women and a man walked into the meeting room, all of them covered in the dust characteristic of the conditions outside. One of the women he had already met and had been told at the time that she was the ship's security officer, the other two he hadn't met yet though he didn't like the look of the big man at all let alone the way he seemed to hover over the other women, eyes shielded by dark goggles, muscles bulging, face serious.

"Candace had better stay in that room or I'll skin her alive! Why can't she do anything but cause trouble?" The woman he hadn't met said to the man with them in low tones that obviously weren't meant to be over heard by anyone else.

"That's what she was born to do. That's all she's done since she's been since she's been onboard." The security officer shook her head.

"She's just like you were at her age. Always causing trouble." The man said with a shrug as she turned her back on the scientist with barely a thought to him at all.

"Oh shut up!" The girl said but there was affection in her voice. It was like the outline tattooed in black on her shoulder jumped out and smacked him on the face. Beau was clearly that creature. Before he could stop himself he had jumped to his feet and pointed at her, his eyes as wide as saucers.

"It's you!"

"It's you!" It sounded almost like an accusation and before Jack knew what was happening, she had been spun around by strong, firm hands and was facing a well dressed man with Riddick's arm crossing her stomach and Riddick himself in a somewhat defensive stance.

Jack looked at the strange man; her green eyes taking in his mousy colored hair and full beard, his clean cut clothing and alert light brown eyes. He was a man that instantly made Jack put her guard up. There was something about the tone that he used that scared her, that set her on edge and she didn't like it. Then there was Riddick's obvious distrust, not that he trusted many people, but when he could barely tolerate someone he had only just met, then she had a hard time dealing with them either.

"It's you!" He said it again, the same tone, the same look on his face that Jack just couldn't trust. Next to her Riddick growled, the kind of growl that was more animal then human, that came from deep down in the throat and that reverberated through the air. She could see the 'Dangerous Riddick' start to emerge, the Riddick that was totally cold, a merciless killing machine that seemed to have very little reason.

It had been a long time since she had seen that Riddick. The day of her nineteenth birthday, a day she would rather forget then remember but as she stood there looking at the look on his face it all came back to her. The damned apartment in the rough side of town they had been living in, how he had left her on her own only to come back twenty minutes later to find her with her back up against a wall, a gun pressed against her forehead, two men sacking the apartment and the third man with his hand pressed against her breast.

"Put that away!" Captain Manor snapped, as Riddick's other hand appeared from behind his back, sharp shiv in his hand ready to use. This was the Riddick that Jack both feared and felt safe because of but none of the rest of them could understand why, they hadn't experienced the things that she had been through with him. Even in her fear, this was a Riddick that Jack clung to.

Riddick just glared at the man, his eyes daring him to take a step closer to them.

"Jack, you had better do something." Sam whispered at her as the well-dressed man took a step back and Riddick's whole body tensed. He reminded her of a big cat getting ready to pounce and kill. Jack looked over at Sam for a moment, communicating her possible helplessness before laying a gentile hand on her big protector's arm, the muscles tightened slightly in response but otherwise his posture didn't chance, he didn't even look away from his quarry.

"Stop it!" She hissed at him not daring to use his name encase the man in front of them had less of a brain then it looked. Her hand gripped the arm that was wrapped around her defensively, trying to get his attention to focus back on her. "Look at me!" The tone of her voice must have penetrated because suddenly he was looking at her and she was seeing her startled and slightly fearful reflection looking back at her in his goggles. "Stop it now, please!"

"Damn it!" He swore loudly before he gave her one more look that told her she had better say quickly if she wanted him to stay and when she said nothing he stalked out of the control room, leaving everyone looking at the door he had just exited from in shock. Jack suddenly felt very vulnerable and part of her wished that she had asked him to stay.

"I should really..." Jack started, looking for an excuse to get away as quickly as possible but Captain Manor's hand on her shoulder stopped her from rushing out of the door after Riddick. "But sir..." With a shake of his head he stopped her from going forward again.

"Calm down for me, for a just moment Jack. I need to introduce you to someone but I want you to take a breath first and realize that no one is going to hurt you or him. Are you hearing me?"

"Yes sir, I understand that sir." Jack said but looked anxiously at the door again. "Really sir, I should go and see if..."

"Relax."

"I am relaxed sir, it's just that I really think that I should go make sure that he..."

"Later Jack."

"But sir, you don't get it I need to get..."

"Jack!"

"Sorry sir. Can we hurry this up please?" She gave him a pleading look before looking at the door again.

"Jackie Stewart, I need to introduce you to Dr. Johnston. He has headed up the research on this planet for the past number of years." The Captain said drawing her attention to the well dressed stranger again.

"So you're the dumb fuck who has been messing around down here." Jack looked at him with disgust and contempt. "Maybe we shouldn't have called him off so quickly. Maybe he would have done the world a small favor getting rid of this one." She glared at him, daring Captain Manor to disagree openly with her. At least now she knew why he had given her the creeps. Anyone who willingly worked on that planet gave her the creeps, working there went against what she believed in; people who worked there had a death wish.

"So you're the girl who survived the long night." The Doctor was still pointing at her, seeming unperturbed now that Riddick was gone. Shit, she wished he hadn't left! She should have made him stay.

"What gave it away? The smile? The cheerfulness?" She growled at him, her own self-protective walls jumping up as she stared him down. She could tell that he was suddenly unsure of her but it didn't seem to affect his confidence, which was still unwavering even if he realized that she didn't relish him being there. Riddick's dangerousness tended to be obvious, hers was subtler, after all, she was only female, and she had none of the imposing bulk that Riddick had. It was safer to be underestimated then overestimated; it gave her a small advantage.

"You have one of this planet's only living creatures tattooed in black ink on your shoulder blade actually Miss Stewart." He said with a shrug and a victorious smile. "That is what gave your identity away."

"Well done Sherlock." She growled at him as recognition dawned on her. "You've seen them?" Jack's even stair turned to a murderous glare. He didn't say anything, just starred right back at her almost in fascination. "Answer me you damn fuck!" She yelled, not caring suddenly that her employer was in the room or that she was way over stepping the mark.

"Jack calm down and I would appreciate it if you don't talk to the passengers in that tone of voice." Captain Manor interjected.

"Yes sir. Sorry sir." Jack answered him but didn't look away from Dr. Johnston, the look on her face never changed. "Answer the fucking question please." She said again but this time her voice was soft, almost too soft. She smiled threateningly at him as Sam tugged on her arm but she snatched it away. She was going to get an answer if it was the last thing she did and then she was going to lay into the stupid scientist.

"I've studied the creatures extensively over the past five years. They are extremely fascinating wouldn't you say? I was hoping that you would be willing to help me in my stu..."

"Help you!" She said through clenched teeth.

"A greater understanding of them could be helpful in understanding what happened when your ship crashed."

"They killed people, that's clear enough understanding for me." Jack growled.

"I'm a persistent man Miss Stewart, I don't often take no for an answer. You may find that it's better just to answer my questions then refuse me."

"Is that a threat?"

"No. Just a promise."

"Those things have killed people, I've watched them and you want me to fucking help you? You don't have the right to ask me to help you with any of your fucking research until you've lived through what I've lived through and then, I can guarantee you, that you would want no more to do with it then I do."

"Jack, you should leave." Captain Manor ordered as she tried to launch herself across the distance between her and the Doctor but Sam had already wrapped her arms around the girl's waist. "Get her out of here Sam and to him. I'll deal with this." Captain Manor said as Jack tried to lunge at the man again. This time Dr. Johnston wisely moved quickly away from her and toward Captain Manor, the large meeting table keeping them apart. "I told you not to distress her. You're just lucky that he wasn't here, that he had already left before you started."

"Who exactly is he? Captain Manor?" Was the last thing that Jack heard before she was dragged out of the door by Sam.

Jack had a thousand things going through her head as Sam skillfully guided her along the hallways that led back to the room that she shared with Riddick. She hated that man more then she could understand and it was only because of his associations with the planet and the beasts that roamed on it.

"He called them extremely fascinating Sam! He called them fascinating." She said numbly, her voice sounding much like that of a person who was in shock. Sam looked at her with pity on her face, pity and understanding and Jack didn't know which she thought was worse. They reached the shut door of her room a few moments later.

Sam knocked lightly.

The door opened slowly and a pale looking Candace stepped out into the corridor, shutting the door firmly behind her again once she was safely on the other side of it. She looked between the two women and the door as there was a decisive slam of a door opening and shutting. The teenager flinched and smiled nervously at them as if she had to be worried about something.

"Candace?" Sam asked the girl, not letting Jack go into the room until she found out what the hell was going on inside it.

"I dunno what happened. He just came back a little after you guys dropped me back off and stalked around the room for a bit before telling me that I had better stay away from him and shutting himself in the bathroom. He's been in there ever since. I swear I didn't do anything. Really, I didn't!" Candace looked out of big blue eyes at them, eyes that held a little bit of pleading in them. "Can I say out here for a while?"

"We already know that it wasn't your fault. Trust me I know who the fucking problem was." Jack nodded looking at the door with a frown. "I should have gotten here sooner. I have to learn to disobey orders."

"Did he hurt you?" Sam asked ignoring Jack's glare that turned quickly to her.

"Sam!" Jack said in protest, not being able to believe that Riddick would hurt the kid or any kid for that matter. He was a killer, sure, but he did not kill children or women, he never had.

"He didn't touch me, just muttered some seriously scary shit and told me to stay away from him." She took a couple of deep breaths as the security officer gave her a scrutinizing look as if she was trying to see if there was even a hair split on the teenager's head. "Look, I'm telling the truth Sam. He didn't hurt me. I'm not so scared of him that I won't tell you the truth."

"Stay with Sam as long as you want to Candace, just stay onboard this ship and stay armed." Jack said as she made a move toward the door again, her arm extended so that her hand could grasp the door handle. Sam stopped her again. "What now, Sam? Haven't we covered everything we need to for now?"

"I'm not sure that you should go in there either Jack. Maybe you should give him a little while to cool off." Sam suggested.

"What do you think he's going to do to me Sam?"

"I dunno, but it doesn't sound like he's being very gentile with the things around him at the minute." Sam gave her a look that communicated her mistrust clearly. "I'm your friend, I don't want to see you getting hurt by him, especially not with you're never failing trust."

"Let go of me Sam. Riddick's not going to hurt me. And you're right, my trust in him is pretty solid, you just can't see past what he's done." She gave her friend an even stare.

"It's hard to get past some of the things that he's done Jack. He's killed people and a lot of those killings have not been all that nice to even think about." Sam shook her head almost mad at Jack because half the time it seemed that Jack couldn't see what was in front of her. "You trust him totally?"

"With my life, Sam. He's given me no reason not to. He stuck with me when everyone that you would look at as responsible left me, he won't hurt me." Jack nodded as she pushed open the door, leaving the security officer and the teenager outside and walked inside the darkened room, closing the door behind her and swiveled the lock.

"Not such a good idea trusting someone like me with your life Jack. Maybe you should listen to your friends a little more often." Riddick growled suddenly from behind her and she was spun around and slammed up against the wall, the cold touch of a sharpened blade at her throat. She could see his rage; the Riddick that she knew was a cold killer, the Riddick that relished in the feeling of blood spilling over his hands and felt no remorse.

The breath caught in her throat but she forced her shock and the momentary fear away. Fear only fueled the beast; she reminded herself as she forced herself to draw a breath and just looked him in the eyes, trying to find the man she knew in the anger. She had done it once before, she could do it again, all she had to do was find the other Riddick.

"I can't help it. Put the shiv down Riddick." She said calmly. She had learned too well how not to betray herself. "You're not going to hurt me and you know it just as well as I do. You've invested too much in me to kill me."

"I can kill you just as easily as the others."

"If you could, you would have done it already." She answered flatly as a bead of sweat trickled down her spine and he pressed the blade a little harder against her throat. She didn't move, just kept eye contact with him. "Riddick put it down." Any harder and the sharp edge would tear through her skin with ease, there would be little help for her then, she knew it.

"Fuck!" He yelled stepping away from her a few long seconds later, throwing the handcrafted weapon out of his hand and across the room. It clattered to the ground as it hit the opposite wall and Riddick's shoulders slumped slightly. She breathed out slowly and then pulled in a breath to stop herself from shaking. She hadn't realized she had been holding her breath.

She had known that he wouldn't hurt her but that didn't exactly stop the fear from cursing through her body when she felt the weapon so close to her throat. She could almost feel the warmth of her own blood as it flowed out of her veins. Jack had felt it before, the loss of blood, the fear that went with it. It wasn't an experience that she wanted to ever go through again. She touched her neck where the blade had been pressed, there was no damage that she could feel so there wasn't much chance of a mark, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Jack slowly crossed the distance between her and Riddick, making sure that her movements were smooth and non-threatening. She reached out her hand and gently touched his arm. He looked down at her, the rage on his face changing to a look of intense disappointment and for once she knew that he wasn't disappointed in her.

"Hi." She said softly and gave him a small smile, holding back other emotions until she was sure that he was back to normal. "Feeling a little more like you now?"

"That is me Jack, that's part of who I am. I still don't get how the hell...?" His voice trailed slightly.

"How the hell what?" She frowned.

"Sometimes I just don't get you Jack. Why you stick around after shit like this I will never know?"

"That's a stupid thought process." She laughed. "You know that I'd rather be with your foul tempered ass then anywhere else and don't you go forgetting it either. I've not been scared of you since I was that stupid fifteen year old who was looking for heroes in escaped convicts and finding them."

"I just put a shiv to your throat Jack. There's nothing heroic about that." He answered her back. She shook her head and gave his arm another squeeze with her hand before looking up at him again.

"So?" She shrugged, her tone asking him if he was trying to make a serious point or not.

"So shivs tend to kill Jack." There was scorn laced in with his comment.

"You could put a gun to my head, doesn't mean that you would actually hurt me. In fact, that might be a good escape tactic sometime, but you would have to take me with you if you did that you realize. I don't think I could be all that convincing at hating you." She said confidently. He managed a small chuckle at her comment but it didn't last for long, that escape tactic might just have to be used one day and both of them knew it, they had spoken about those kinds of things before, years ago.

"You can't know that for sure Jack."

"Yeah I can, this is only the second time you've done this." She moved away from him and shook her head. "I had done a good job forgetting about it until I saw the look on your face in that meeting room."

He just looked at her as if trying to discern something but she wasn't sure what.

"You told me at the time that you might never remember." She turned away from him. It was a memory that was all of a sudden fresher then she had ever thought it would be again. She could see him moving through the main room of that flat like a whirlwind, she watched man after man fall down dead until she was free and it was only her and Riddick in the room.

Jack gritted her teeth, remembering the look on his face never changing as he turned his shined eyes from the man he had just killed to her. It was like he had forgotten for a moment that she was the reason he had gotten so angry in the first place, that he had only killed to get her out of trouble. She had jumped from trouble to a damn sight worse. She had never wanted him to look at her like that again.

It had always interested her how people could forget; they would get drunk or go into denial and after long enough the event never took place. And other people, they just never remembered, no matter how much they are told about the events or even if they revisit the places. She had always figured that Riddick was one of the later, that something inside him took over. He had once told her that he didn't remember a lot about some of his worst kills, the ones that had happened while he was in a rage.

"The day you turned nineteen you mean?"

"You remember that?" She looked at him sharply.

"Did you expect me to have forgotten?"

"You said that you might and you never exactly mentioned it again."

"Neither did you."

"What? You thought that I had forgotten?" She had to laugh at that moment. The whole thing was just so bloody ridiculous that she had no idea what else to do. "God this whole thing is just bloody stupid! Even then I knew you couldn't hurt me," She shook her head. "I know you can't hurt me but it seems like you like to fucking try anyway."

"Jack-"

"It doesn't matter; I've just had my fill of threatening situations for the day." She turned so she was facing him again. "Thanks, by the way, for saving my ass again out there."

"I'd do it again if I had to Jack." He said and gave her a smile that put her mind slowly to rest before he pulled her in for a quick hug. The gesture made her smile. She couldn't help but like the slightly more emotion friendly Riddick.

"Riddick?" She said after a moment or two of close silence.

"What Jack?"

"I might have gotten myself into a little bit of trouble with these people on the ship. The good Dr. Johnston has whack ideas about me helping him with his research. He did not look like a man who could take no for an answer and he basically said the same but I don't want you getting involved, I can handle it."

"What?" Riddick's voice didn't exactly hold promise of compliance.

"You heard me loud and clear Riddick." She frowned at him.

"Why exactly wouldn't I get involved?"

"Because I've already put you in enough danger. All it would take was for one of the passengers on this ship to recognize you and that would be it, Mr. Bradley would be back and he wouldn't be after me this time." Jack shook her head.

"What exactly happened?"

"He has been studying the creatures for a few years and wants me to rehash my experiences from him so that he can get more behavioral insights but I wasn't just exactly all that charming to him. I would rip his fucking guts out if I could." The look on her face spoke plainly enough about just how willing she was to carry out her threat. It was not a look that Riddick had expected nor relished seeing on her face.

"Did he threaten you?"

"Not in so many words." She shrugged. "I can't help him with his fucking research and I won't."

"I can take care of this Jack."

"No. I don't want you to. I just wanted you to be aware. He was asking questions about you as well. Captain Manor hasn't told him anything as far as I know. I just thought that you had better know." She sighed and looked at the floor. "I...damn that man. If he doesn't stay well enough away from me I'll kill him."

"Kill him?"

"Watch me." She said through clenched teeth and he couldn't help but believe her.

Dr. Johnston paced around the cargo-bay in front of the tranquillized Beau's cage. He was angry and offended and there didn't seem to be a lot he could do about it. Captain Manor had stopped being the charming man that he had met soon after he had upset the pilot and then he had told him that the identity of the girl's violent protector was classified information.

Jack had been extremely offensive and in all honesty he didn't understand why. She already seemed to have made up her mind about him before she had ever met him and it was all because of her preconceptions about the planet, although, perhaps she had a reason for having those.

"Dumb fuck indeed. A dumb fuck with a PHD." He muttered as a young man, a member of _The Aurora's _crew, walked into the large room.

"Dr. Johnston?" He looked at him and Dr. Johnston turned his full attention to him, thinking that there was something familiar about his voice. "Have you seen a young girl? Around sixteen years old?"

The Doctor looked at him confused and shook his head, "What happened?"

"One of the passengers has disappeared."


	14. Skewered

Hello everyone and welcome to Chapter 14, brought to you by myself with the help of Pendragon04, who once again proof read this for me before I posted it. Thanks so much! I also want to say a thank you to all my reviewers who have been faithful in telling me what they think. It helps so much to read your reviews, makes me want to continue writing and posting.

Well enough of me blabbering on. Thanks so much for reading, drop in a review and tell me what you think.

Thanks

Kayla

* * *

Chapter 14: Skewered

"What the hell happened Sam? You were meant to be watching her." Jack yelled on arrival at the meeting room. "You knew that I had shit to deal with and you said that you'd watch her!"

"I don't know what the hell happened. One minute she was with me in the cargo area of the ship with three of the scientists and the next minute, she was gone. All I can think is that she somehow left or was taken by them back to the temp labs." Sam shook her head, her face flushed slightly because of Jack's on slot. "It's either that or she went for a wonder on the surface. She's slippery Jack, you saw yourself how slippery she could be."

"I'm going to kill her for his, I swear to God, I don't need this right now and I told her not to leave this ship!" Jack snapped, angry at herself as much as she was angry at her friend. She should have been the one making sure the kid didn't get in trouble, not Sam, but instead she had to be confessing to a criminal.

"You can take one of the buggies if you want to go look for her yourself." Captain Manor said but his statement was as much a question of wither she was going to do it as it was an offer of help.

"Well, I'm not about to sit around here and leave everyone else to go looking for her. She's my responsibly sir." She growled. "Give me five minutes to go tell Riddick what's going on and I'll..."

"You going to take Riddick with you?" Captain Manor frowned.

"He can't leave this ship!" Sam said forcefully.

"He's fine now and I can't leave this ship without him, he will blow a gasket if I do." Jack glared at Sam. "I can't go looking for her if I can't leave the fucking ship because he can't leave. Candace is my responsibility Sam, I trusted you with her and you lost her and I'm Riddick's responsibility as far as he is concerned which means that he has a say in this too."

"Jack, he had the kid totally spooked earlier, which, may I add, is why she ended up with me looking after her in the first place. I think that maybe he should stay where he is for the moment."

"No fucking way Sam!" Jack slammed her fist into the meeting room table and the two women who were normally good friends glared at each other. Captain Manor shook his head as he looked between the two of them.

"Enough both of you!" He asserted finally. "Jack, go with Sam and see if you can find the teenager, I'll take Riddick with me if he wants to go see if we can find her. Sam your protest has been noted. Dismissed, both of you."

"Yes sir!" Both women left the meeting room at a jog and jumped into one of the sand buggies, Jack taking her place at the wheel.

With Sam giving her directions, they sped off toward the scientist's temporary labs and camp. The whole planet made Jack nervous and she knew she wasn't all that good at looking after teenagers at the best of times let alone when she was stressed out of her mind trying to deal with her own issues. That and she wasn't sure what exactly the teen was thinking half of the time, when Jack had been her age she had been hopping planets with one of the universe's most wanted men and worrying about him leaving her, acting like a kid had never occurred to her.

Jack in many ways had missed out on being a teenager, simply because most of the time Riddick hadn't treated her like a child, more like an adult. As a teenager, she had been trained in weapons and vigilance, she had learned how to protect herself and how to survive; she had even learned from the best how to kill, how to hide and in a strange sort of way how to protect but not how to nurture or care for a kid.

Candace had chosen the worst possible time to put in her little disappearing act. She hadn't even had time to really talk to Riddick about her sudden killer instincts before John had nervously announced himself and dragged her off to see the Captain because Candace had gone missing. Part of her wondered what exactly Riddick had made of her aggressive declaration; he certainly hadn't looked happy about it. Sometimes she forgot that he didn't know much about her life over the past two years, that he didn't know what she had done yet.

_Gods she could be stupid sometimes._ She snapped at herself.

"Kirsten, Tony, Daniel?" Sam yelled as they arrived at the Scientist's labs. Jack threw on the break and the buggy skidded to a halt quicker then she thought that it would and jumped out of the frame and onto the sand.

"You guys really got here fast." Kirsten Leal, Dr. Johnston's own personal assistant met them as she came running out of a building, red blood on her white lab coat and her face very pale. "Captain Manor said that it would be a good ten minutes before he could get the medical supplies over here."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Sam asked.

"Captain Manor didn't send you?" The research assistant looked suddenly very grave. "You don't have the blood?"

"Blood?" Sam looked incredulous.

"No! We're looking for a sixteen year old girl whose gone missing. We're not carrying blood." Jack snapped. "What the fuck is going on?"

"Well, the girl isn't missing, but she's been hurt pretty badly. She stumbled across one of our last test subjects and she's been loosing blood fast though we've managed to slow the bleeding considerably, we won't be able to do much more until we get her stitched up properly. She's a rare blood type, without the blood, she'll be pretty close to screwed." Jack followed the women into the room as she explained. "Without the blood, we can't stabilize her."

Candace was lying on a table with two men hovering around her, her face was ghostly pale and there was a massive puncture mark on her stomach, which had been packed with gauze. Machines had been set up around her, monitoring her heart rate, blood pressure and other things. Jack paled and swallowed. The creatures looked set to claim another victim and this was one that she was meant to be looking after.

"Oh God!" Sam breathed as Jack was handed the read out of her blood type and vitals.

Jack read the information quickly and then looked between the suffering teenager and the scientist. "Are you sure she's O negative?"

"Nearly positive."

"Do you have the right equipment for a blood transfusion here?" She asked taking off her vest jacket and handing it to Sam. Kirsten nodded, her perfectly plucked eyebrows furrowed slightly. "I have the same blood type as that girl, even if you're wrong O negative can be given to her anyway. Lets get her stabilized."

"Are you sure you're O negative?" Kirsten asked after giving out instructions for the equipment to be gotten and the second bed set up.

"You can call Captain Manor and ask him if you don't believe me." Jack snapped.

"The ship holds records of medical information for the crew members. Manor has blood for each of his crew members on board, which would be why he would be able to get you the blood anyway." Sam explained a little further.

"But I knew before that what blood type I was. It was one of the first things that... that he checked when I started living with him." Jack nodded and jumped up onto the second gurney that was set up, her green eyes watching the much younger girl with worry as Candace turned her head and looked at her out of bleary eyes.

"Who's he?"

"Her parents died when she was young, he was a guardian of sorts." Sam again answered. "She doesn't like to talk about him very often and she basically never says his name."

"Jack?" The voice that came from the teenager's mouth was weak and feeble.

"Hi. Close your eyes and get some rest, nothing's gonna happen, we'll get you patched up really quick." Jack said and gave the teen a smile as Kirsten moved between them setting up for the blood transfusion. Jack laid back and closed her eyes as she felt the needle penetrate the skin of her arm. Gods, Riddick was right, she was out trying to play super hero all the time. "Sam?"

"Already done, they're on their way. They know what's happening." Sam answered her before she let herself drift off into her own memories.

Jack had only ever really been sick twice when she had been under Riddick's protection. The first time was on that broken down skiff after they had left the planet and Imam had nursed her back to health until Riddick had gotten them to a planet where she had been taken to see a doctor almost immediately. According to the doctor it was a simple virus that had taken hold but that coupled with whatever recent stress she had been under her immune system had packed it in. That had cost her three days in a hospital being pumped full of drugs and worrying that Riddick would leave her and Imam.

When she was nineteen, they had settled down for a couple of months on one of the less desirable planets and like she always did, Jack went out and got a job. It usually didn't bother her, what she did; she had worked in burger bars, construction sites, in all sorts of retail. The whole point was that she was able to get a little bit of money to save or do with as she pleased. In the end the habit helped her out; she had job references from a good handful of planets.

But it was on that one occasion that she managed to contract a nasty infection from a fight she had gotten in at her job. She had been working as a cook at a small diner type place and one of the guys had taken a disliking to her. It had ended in a fight and her getting cut by a less then clean kitchen knife.

The minute that the infection started to spread and she got sick, Riddick had packed them up quickly and they had spent two months floating around space. Jack had spent most of that time fighting the damned infection that had her bedridden for weeks and Riddick doing his best to help her stop the infection from getting any worse. He could have been a bloody doctor with his knowledge and the kit he had on board their ship.

Otherwise she just didn't tend to get sick. Like everyone else she had come down with odd colds and thing that had plagued the human race for generations but even those she didn't catch that often. Considering her job and the time she spent in confined spaces with lots of other people she was healthier then the other pilots that frequented the station that _The Aurora_ docked at.

She didn't know how long she had been sitting on that bed giving her blood to the teenager before she felt a large hand grip her own hand. She knew without even looking that it was Riddick and she smiled then opened her eyes to find that the room was extremely dimmed and that he didn't have his dark goggles on. His silver eyes were watching her face, she had always liked his eyes, she realized looking at them, they had always been a comfort of sorts.

"How you feeling?" He asked as she felt the needle being extracted from her arm and she looked over at Candace with concern but also noticed that some of the color had returned to her pale cheeks and that they were hooking her up to a blood bag.

"A little drained." She answered, trying her hand at humor as Sam brushed some loose hair off the teen's forehead. Candace was breathing evenly and her eyes were closed in sleep as they wheeled her out of the room to transfer her from the temp labs back to _The Aurora_.

"I'm going to set you up with a little food and get you some juice to have a sip on. After that, all you can do is relax. The Captain has told us that there's a doctor onboard the ship in cryo sleep at the moment and they're going to wake him to see if he would be willing to help the girl." Kirsten Leal walked over with a chocolate bar and a paper cup.

"You wanna tell me exactly what happened to her?" Jack asked frowning but feeling slightly light-headed as she sat up and took the chocolate and the fruit juice.

"She got too close to one of the test subjects that we hadn't taken care of yet. She just kinda wondered off, and then we heard her scream. She was lucky that it didn't kill her." The women shrugged.

"Was it one of those fucking creatures that your boss finds so wonderfully fascinating?" Jack snarled and Kirsten nodded, the look on her face coming close to ashamed.

"Like I said, it's the only one left, the others were let loose again or killed. We just hadn't gotten around to that one yet." The assistant reiterated holding back the fact that there was one more of them tranquilized in the cargo bay that had been assigned to them on _The Aurora_. "Would you like to see it? I can arrange for you to see it. I mean, if that's what you would like."

"I saw enough of those fucking things seven years ago thanks very much." Jack unhooked her blaster from her side and handed it to Riddick. "I would do it if I thought I would be steady-"

"Think of it as already done Jack." He nodded adjusting the setting to the one that he preferred, that evil glint back in his eye that told her that he would very much enjoy blasting the thing into oblivion.

"Come get me when you're done?" She asked as he settled his goggles over his eyes and moved to the doorway where he paused and looked over his shoulder.

"I'll be back for you in a moment." He answered.

* * *

There was one problem with giving your blood away, Jack mused as she watched the sleeping teenager being taken off of the anesthetic, you felt a little dizzy and weak for a while afterward. The teenager groaned slightly as she started to come around but as of yet her eyes hadn't opened and she hadn't spoken.

"You really got yourself into trouble this time kid." Jack whispered shaking her head as the girl's eyes finally opened and a tear trickled down her cheek and a whimper escaped her throat. Jack's heart went out to her in that moment, she knew what it was like to feel helpless and in pain.

"She's going to feel a little weak and be in a bit of pain for a while." Jack was informed as she smoothed down some of Candace's hair in the way that her mother had done for her when she couldn't sleep at night. She just hoped that it offered the girl some sort of comfort. "I'll give her what the doctor told me I could but it won't take all the pain away." After she had checked out the girl, she left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Jack?" The girl's eyes searched the room until she had found Jack's face.

"I'm here." Jack gave her a reassuring smile. "You know I should bloody well skin you alive for running off like that and getting yourself hurt, not to mention worrying me to death. Didn't I tell you to stay on the ship? Didn't I warn you about what was out there?"

"I feel like I've already been skinned alive." She whimpered again and squeezed her eyes shut; another tear or two escaping and trailing slowly down her cheeks.

"Well, the creature is dead and we'll be off this rock within the next few of hours depending on Riddick." Jack wiped the tears away with the edge of the bed sheet.

"Why in the next few hours? I thought that we'd already be gone." Candace frowned, it seemed that she had developed a dislike for the planet too.

"According to my shadow, I need a good few hours rest before I try and pilot this ship. I think he's worried that I'm going to pass out at the controls or something." Jack was grinning, not having the heart to chastise the kid any more then she already had. She almost had to laugh when the before mentioned shadow appeared in the doorway a frown etched onto his face.

"Why would you pass out?"

"I gave you a blood transfusion about three and a half hours ago." She shrugged. The teenager looked at her in shock. "Don't worry about it kid, I wasn't about to let you die on me from loss of blood."

"But how? I don't even know what blood type I am."

"Don't complain when someone is able to save your life kid." Riddick said stepping inside the room and laying a hand on Jack's shoulder. "You should be resting Jack." The tone was light, all he was doing was trying to voice his opinions but it came out like more of an order then he had meant it to.

"I don't need to be in a fucking bed to rest Riddick." She gave him a pointed look and he shrugged. "I haven't had the chance to talk to the doctor yet. Anyway, I wanted to make sure that Candace came out of her surgery alright."

"Did I?" Candace asked looking skeptical.

"As far as I know you did. You'll be in pain for a while but after we're up in the air, we'll put you in cryo-sleep while you heal up, it might make things a little easier for you, you shouldn't feel much pain while you're in one of the tubes." Jack smoothed down the girl's hair again and gave her a smile as Kirsten walked in with a full syringe.

"It's just something to numb the pain and help you relax." The scientist explained as she injected the contents of the syringe into the teenager's arm.

"Stay until I fall asleep?" Candace asked tentatively.

"Not going anywhere." Jack nodded and gave her a smile.

* * *

"You and I need to talk Jack." Riddick said as Jack lowered herself into a chair and frowned. He hated when she did that, he could already see her mind jumping to conclusions before he had even spoken again.

"If you're going to rag on me for helping Candace then I don't even want to hear it. It was my choice and that's the end of that. She's my responsibility because of you and I've got to take her a little more seriously after this." She said. She was exhausted; he could see it in every bone of her body.

What made her so willing to put herself on the line for other people?

"You did a noble thing Jack. I wasn't going to say anything about it." He sat down across from her and watched her watch him. He smiled to himself, Jack had always watched him closely, not usually as openly as she was able to at that moment, but her eyes had always had a knack for following his movements or being able to work out exactly where he was even in the dark and it wasn't something that he found unpleasant. Just like her curiosity and aptitude for learning, it was something that had made him comfortable around her. "I'm not going to 'rag on you' for it."

"Oh." Jack bit her lip and gave him a confused look. "What is it then Riddick?"

"When I put that blade to your throat before-"

Jack didn't let him finish. "We've already dealt with that." She shook her head stubbornly.

"Listen to me Jack." He snapped a little more harshly then he had intended to. "You have to understand that, that could happen to me at anytime, you could come in the firing line again Jack. That rage is apart of me, has been for as long as I can remember."

"I know that. I accepted that part of you a long time ago. That's apart of the person that I've come to know and love." She actually looked afraid for a moment. What did she think he was going to say to her? Did she think that he was going to tell her that he didn't want her around any more, that he thought that he was too dangerous for her to handle? Even if that was the truth, he wouldn't have told her, for a start she wouldn't have listened and as much as part of him would have loved to send her away from him or walk away from her, he knew that he couldn't, that he would stay in her life as long as she made it clear that he was welcome to do so. "Riddick, what's wrong?" She pushed again.

"I want to make sure that you know who and what exactly it is that you just claimed to love Jack." Riddick said bluntly.

"I don't say anything that I don't mean." She set her jaw and was set to stare him down if she had to.

"Jack, I'm a killer, I like the kill, I like the hunt, and I like the smell of blood and fear." He snapped at her, "that is apart of who I am. Do you love that too?" He looked evenly at her and then watched in near horror as tears suddenly filled her eyes. "Gods Jack, for fuck's sake don't cry."

"I'm sorry." She said wiping at her eyes with her hands and trying to pull herself together again, her own stress and worry getting to her on top of his words cutting a little too close to the bone. "I screwed up alright, I know how you get when you're in a rage, I should have given you more time to cool off and I know that but I couldn't just leave you in there to seethe. That's not who I am Riddick. I just had to make you understand why I can't be afraid of you like other people are. Why the fact that you're a killer and enjoy everything about it doesn't bother me! Maybe I shouldn't have been so eager to get in this room earlier but I couldn't help myself. I know I rush into things without thinking but I knew you weren't going to hurt me. I know you!"

"What are you apologizing for Jack?"

"I dunno!" Jack frowned at him. "Everything. I'm apologizing for putting myself in the position where you almost killed me again. I'm sorry that I came back to the planet, I'm sorry that I almost got you killed by going into that fucking ship, I'm sorry that I have an aggressive streak, I'm sorry that I've got Johnston's people breathing down my neck now, I'm sorry that you don't like the fact that I care about you, all of you, killer and all. I'm sorry-" She stopped her head long rush of words when he held his hand up for silence. She just looked at him, breathing a little quick, the tears gone but now along with the persona of exhaustion that surrounded her, there was now an air of defeat and anger. "I'm sorry that you think that just because you almost killed me a time or two that I would all of a sudden be scared of you and stop caring about you. You are not unlovable Riddick." She made herself finish what she had to say before falling completely silent.

A headset next to him started bleeping and he reached for it slowly as Jack seemed to pull herself together again. He frowned as he handed it over to her and she put it on. It seemed that every time he wanted to sit down and have a serious conversation with her one event or another or a person or stupid fucking headsets interrupted them. He would have liked to find out where that aggressive streak had come from, why she seemed to care so deeply about him, find out what the hell she had been doing over the past two years that Kelly had felt she had to take the rap for.

"Jack here." She answered it. "No sir- Whose problem sorry?- Well how soon do you want to be in the air?- No sir, not complaining- The doctor's seen her again?- I'll be right up to see you- No sir, he won't be joining me- Yes, I'm fine sir- I'll make my way up right away."

Jack stood up and grabbed her vest jacket almost aggressively and she didn't even bother to put on before walking out of the door, she walked like she was pissed off about something and he knew it was him who had pissed her off. Women, no matter who they were, were such moody creatures he thought as she walked out of the door.


	15. Numb

Hey everyone,

Sorry that this has taken so long to get up to you all and I won't get into the stress and the mess that made it so as it would take a novel in itself to explain fully. Pendragon04 can tell you of my frustration with this chapter but after a little more tweaking and things I'm at least happy to post it for now, with the thoughts of later revision in mind but I need to move this one on so here we go.

Thanks to all my reviewers, at the moment I am needing the encouragement of your reviews so please, if you're reading this, just drop me a line and let me know what you're thinking.

Thanks.

Kayla

Chapter 15: Numb

Jack felt almost in a daze as she walked slowly along _The Aurora's_ corridors to the control room. She didn't know why she went to the control room instead of the Captain's quarters where she had originally been told to go but was rather glad that she did when she saw Captain Manor talking to the elderly doctor who had been pulled out of cryo-sleep to operate on Candace, not that he had had a problem doing so.

He was around sixty years old, a short man with greased over grayish black hair and a slow, tired kind of walk. His eyes were bright blue and alert, eyes that belonged more to a young man in a way rather then the older doctor. It was those blue, blue eyes and the man's steady but soft smile that had made Jack trust him almost immediately. Not many people could say that they had gained her trust basically without trying so the fact that he had was little more then miraculous.

"Cryo-sleep might not be so good for the girl." The doctor was saying to the Captain with a frown on his face.

"What do you mean? I thought that Kirsten said that it would lessen the pain and help her to heal." Jack asked stepping inside the room with out an invitation and ran a hand through her hair as she looked at the doctor with her own style of frown on her face. The mixture of emotions that were still on her mind on top of the worry for the teenager giving her a small headache that pounded at the back of her skull.

"Ahh...Miss Stewart, we were going to be going along to the Captain's quarters to meet you soon to discuss the arrangements but since you are here instead of there..." The Doctor, Ian Loring, greeted her with one of his smiles.

"Jack, I thought you'd be on your way there by now." Tex Manor looked slightly confused.

"I am sir, I was, I just kinda ended up here instead. I dunno why, just walked in this direction without thinking too much about it. Sorry." She smiled back at Dr. Loring. "Why wouldn't cryo-sleep be good for Candace Dr. Loring?" She couldn't help it, she had a one-track mind and at that moment, Candace was what was at the forefront.

"It freezes a lot of the body's natural functions. That includes some of the bodies healing and regenerative powers, even parts of the immune system have been known to shut down whilst in cryo-sleep."

"That doesn't make sense. I mean, you don't even age when you're in cryo, how can it shut down some of the bodies regenerative abilities?" Jack asked.

"The gases that they use to keep a person in cryostasis only allow certain functions that are natural for the body to take place and without some of those particular functions there is the possibility of infection or lack of healing taking place." The Dr. explained. "It might be better for her if she was monitored by someone and kept out of stasis. More of a natural healing environment."

"Fine, I'll do it." Jack shrugged as if the decision was no big deal. But she knew that she would use the job more as an excuse to have something to do besides just hanging around Riddick. At that moment in time the teenager's company was fare more preferable to Riddick's. Right then she would rather not ever have to face the questions that she knew she would eventually have to and that meant keeping someone between her and the asker, that and if she didn't do it, it would either be one of the three Cs told to or Kirsten Leal and the less contact the teen had with those scientists the better. "I don't have anything to tie me down when I'm not doing my duties."

"What would your friend think about that?" The Captain sat down and sighed heavily. She shrugged; it seemed that she wasn't the only one having a bad day. There wasn't a lot of good that had happened since landing on that damned planet, not that she had expected anything good too happen.

"It doesn't really matter what he thinks about it. Candace is my responsibility and he doesn't have to like it. It was him after all that acquired her for me therefore he can't really complain." She said.

"I don't have a say in it? Whose responsibility are you Jack?" Riddick said from the doorway as he walked into the room.

"You know what, it doesn't matter. The kid is my responsibility and I will be the one to look after her." She shrugged. "I might be your responsibility, I might be mine considering I am twenty-two years old but that is beside the point right now. Right now, her health is the most important thing." She shook her head. "Is there any problem with me pulling this baby off of planet hell?"

"Not to the girl's heath. I would request however Captain Manor that you would agree to let me stay out of cryo-sleep until I am satisfied with the child's healing progress." The Doctor said folding his arms, not sure what to make of the argument between the pilot and the man who had appeared as if from nowhere.

"Agreed." Captain Manor nodded. "Jack, how soon can you get us off this planet?"

"Right now if you've got everyone onboard. Pre-flight will take about ten minutes and we should be back in the shipping lanes in another twenty minutes tops. After that, we're back on the new schedule." She answered doing a couple of quick calculations in her head.

"Alright, do it then!" Manor nodded.

"Yes sir." Jack answered a smile on her face. Within seconds Jack had left the small control room that had felt crowded the minute that Riddick had turned up and was headed down the hallway to the cockpit.

It was like she lost her focus when he appeared, like the sharp awareness that she had built up since she thought he had died disappeared. It was like he was able to shatter the facade of being unbreakable and then break her.

She hated it!

She loved it!

Jack walked along the corridor a little faster then she had to, partly to get there and partly because she couldn't wait to get away from the planet. She only hoped that Riddick couldn't tell just how aware of him she was, all of her nerves seemed to be trained on his movements. All of the tenseness she used to feel when walking around the ship was gone, she wasn't as nervous any more or afraid, just very aware of him. It was as if there was a bubble or moving cage that surrounded her when Riddick was near. She had her wish, she felt safe, but at what cost? What cost?

She shuddered, upset by her own thoughts but hoping that her attempt to turn her emotions to ice looked successful even if it wasn't. One hand played with the guard on her wrist as she mentally scolded herself. _"Who the hell do you think you're kidding Jack?" _She mentally screamed at herself. _"Riddick can read you too easily to be fooled. You're a stupid bitch sometimes."_

"Jack?" Riddick raised his eyebrows in question as she walked into the cockpit and turned around, blocking the entrance with her slight frame, her face set in stone, unyielding and stubborn. He knew that she knew that he could just sweep her aside without her resisting too much but she still held her ground. That was the one thing about Jack; sometimes just the fact that she was willing to stand up to him was enough to earn her a lot of respect from him.

"You had better go back to our room. I'll see you when we're back in the shipping lanes. Until then, I want you to let me do my job in peace." Jack said and closed the door to her small sanctuary slightly surprised that he had let her.

There was peace in the small room, for Jack, among the controls there had always been peace. The room itself and its instruments never changed with out planning and permission. The two seats, the monitors and control panels. Jack knew the room intimately, understood the switches and buttons, the leavers...everything. She knew how things were meant to feel and where they were meant to be, nothing could hide from her in that cockpit. Nothing here needed explanation; nothing here would cause extra complications in her life. It was all safe, the same and unchanging.

Her hands moved swiftly over the panels, powering up the ship, doing the job of pilot and co-pilot simultaneously. This was her peace, her chance to lose herself, a time to become a part of the ship's more complex workings. Here she was something more then herself and she revealed in the realization of that fact.

"Powering cells. Ship sealed and fully pressurized. Engine's warming. Life support and artificial gravity on line and at full." Jack said, checking off systems as she moved through her pre-flight routine. "Five minutes till engine fire-up." She said over the headsets and leaned back in her chair, watching the countdown for the engines to be ready for use.

This was Jack's quite time but now, it was marred by the thoughts in her head, her own humiliation. Gods, she had been acting like a bloody teenager!

Her hands ran nervously through her hair. She could be so fucking stupid sometimes, she found Riddick again and because she decided to be honest she had screwed it up. He didn't want anyone to love him, to care about him so why had she made herself tell him that she did. He would leave again and she would have to go back to depending on herself. It was one thing to protect someone that you felt you had an obligation to but finding out that because you had protected them and kept them safe, they had seen another side of you and because of that loved you was another thing altogether.

"Maybe it would be the best for both of us that way. If he left." She told herself out loud. After all, there was a good fifteen years between them. When he looked at her, she was pretty damn sure that all he saw was the fifteen-year-old that he had saved seven years earlier. The kid that got them into trouble, that took her anger and pains and insecurity out with her fists in stupid brawls.

What a kid she had been then, she had done well at emulating Riddick's don't mess with me attitude and for the most part because of it, she had been left alone. There had always been the odd one or two who had hazarded to get close, young men, mainly, who were either intrigued by her attitude or who wanted one thing and one thing only. They never got it and the others often ended up getting her in trouble with over excitable teenage wanna-be sluts, some had been older then in their teens though.

Didn't matter where she was, she seemed to attract a good old fight. Only problem was that she never fought like a girl, she wasn't all scratching and hair pulling. She packed a punch and often ended a fight with a blade at her opponent's throat and a growled warning to leave her alone, yet another thing she had learned worked pretty well from Riddick. It was a release of sorts, it was a way to sort out what Riddick taught her and in a way it was a way to prove to herself that she could be tough if she had to be, that she could look after herself without Riddick's help. It was partly an independent streak in her and part of it was just that she liked to fight sometimes, get rid of her aggression.

The bitch in her wasn't a side that Riddick ever saw often in their time together, not unless he happened to be around when a fight was boiling or turned up on time to see it end. Most of the time on occasions like that, he ended it for them and dragged her the hell away. She would get lectured after it for drawing attention to them; he would rather that she was a quiet ghost so for the most part she had been that way for him, but she had her moments when being the quiet ghost was too much for her.

She sighed deeply as the engine light turned green and the monitor showed them ready for use. It was time to leave hell.

"_Flick power one on, power two on, powering three. Engines are up."_ She thought through the list as she prepared thrusters and her hands moved across the panels, she was all ready to take _The Aurora _into space.

"Flight crew, prepare for take off. Initiating countdown. Ten, nine, eight, seven..." Jack steadily counted them down to take off but instead of starting on one she grinned to herself and sent out a final though to her crewmates. "Buckle your seatbelts guys, we're leaving planet hell."

Jack pushed the leaver that flooded the engine with power from the cells and the ship moved forward a couple of hundred yards before lifting off the ground and heading for the planet's skies. The atmosphere seemed to be fighting them every step of the way, not wanting them to leave the cursed planet of endless days and endless night. But hell if she was going to stay.

"We don't seem to be going up much hotshot." Captain Manor's voice broke through her concentration and she gritted her teeth.

"I'm doing my best sir. There's fight from the planetary atmosphere that I didn't think would be quite so bad. At this rate, it will be six minutes before we leave the gravitational pull of the planet for open space." She said diverting a little more energy to the engines.

The ship lurched to one side suddenly and she lost a little bit of breath as she was thrown to the side hitting her already sore shoulder and ribs against the side of the seat. She gritted her teeth and tried to ignore the lack of breath as she struggled to get the ship level and keep its nose in the air. "Shit, shit, shit!" She whispered as she struggled against the atmospheric currents and tired to ignore the pain.

"What the hell..." Captain Manor said suddenly.

"Do you want me to explain or fly the fucking ship?" She asked through gritted teeth as she tried to ignore the curses of surprise that the rest of the crew were making. There was no response and she adjusted a few settings quickly. "Pull it together Jack." She said to herself gripping the control so hard her knuckles turned white with exertion.

"Come on Jack, you gotta get us outa here, the kid looks fare to chuck." Sam said a note of concern in her voice. She grimaced and gave the boosters on the starboard side a little more power, trying to even the ship out.

"I think this planet wants us to stay. Maybe we'll get stuck here until the next long night." Danny said mockingly but there was a hint of fear hidden behind his comment. A shiver ran up her spine. If they did, it would all be her fault.

"Shut the fuck up Becker." Sam and Jack snapped at the same time as the ship leached again and they lost some altitude. Jack's stomach was suddenly at her feet. Fear hit her almost as hard and for a moment she didn't know what to do.

"I need a co-pilot up here now! Riddick or Becker, I really don't care who, but one of you get your ass up here now!" She snapped as four separate systems showed up on the monitor with warnings and their panels flashed red and orange. "Don't do this to me now. Please don't do this to me now!" She whispered to the ship. She got no response from either of the men or the ship.

"What's going on Jack?" Riddick's voice asked through the headset a few minutes later as he opened the door and walked in.

"Take a look around. We've hit three pressure pockets so far and I'm having a hard time lifting the nose and gaining altitude. And the fact that all these fucking systems need attention I can't give them right now isn't helping me much. I need more damn hands." She said, one hand holding tightly to the controls trying to pull their nose a little further up as the other sought to fix what she could of the other systems. Riddick buckled himself in the co-pilot's chair and shoved her hand off the system's panels.

"You get the nose in the air, leave the rest to me. "He said.

"Can you get me any more power from the cells John? A little extra would help lift us out of this pocket." She said pulling a couple of leavers and pulling the nose of the ship up a little further trying to ignore the groaning in the welding as the ship powered forward breaking through one pocket only to move into another one.

"Will do what I can." John acknowledged and Jack looked momentarily across the panels to see Riddick's hands moving with skill and certainty but then she had always known that he was a good pilot, she had watched him pilot them through some pretty bad situations in the past and he had been the first to teach her how to pilot. She didn't have to worry about him the same way she might have had Danny been the one to arrive to help her.

"Come on! Pull us through, pull us through." She whispered to the ship as John diverted some power, giving her enough to punch them out of the atmosphere and into space.

Relief flooded her as she slacked off the speed and drove the ship out into the shipping lanes. Her heart was pounding a mile a minute as _The Aurora_ pulled into clear and well-charted space. There was nothing but stars in the shipping lanes and there wasn't much in between them and those lanes.

"Starting full systems check and setting auto-pilot." Jack said licking her dry lips, fear of crashing on that planet for the second time still sending chills up her spine and that was a fear she had never thought she would encounter again. "How bad is the damage to the rest of this ship John?"

"Am checking up now. We got a little battered going up there but no hull breaches." John answered. "We were lucky Jack, didn't think we'd make it for a while there."

"Thank God for that or we wouldn't have had a chance." Jack nodded.

"How many of those pressure pockets did we hit exactly?" Captain Manor asked.

"Five total and then we broke into space." Riddick answered as Jack leaned across him to press a couple of buttons. She was still shaking slightly and no matter how hard it seemed she tired she couldn't stop. She could see in her head, loosing control of _The Aurora_ completely and it spiraling down to hit the planet's surface once more. It would have been like _The Hunter-Gratzner _all over again and she would have been powerless to stop it.

"_I think this planet wants us to stay."_ Danny's words floated through her head as she programmed the autopilot. _"No!"_ She thought as she set the speed and plotted the best course to take them back to the Masilian Station where _The Aurora_ docked when the crew went back to their homes for down time. _"The planet didn't want The Aurora or anyone else on that ship but it did want her."_ She had escaped it twice.

How she longed for downtime at that moment. To split from Captain Manor who never left his ship, to know Danny and John were back in their rented flat aboard the station, to fly Sam down to Anastre 7 and drive her home before going back to her own flat, a place scarred with memories, scarred but safe.

But things would be different this time.

There was no way that she would let Candace just disappear into foster care, where they would most probably never bother looking for her father. Jack would do what she could to find the kid's merc father and if she couldn't then she would do her best as far as Candace was concerned. She wouldn't make the kid feel the way she had felt at one point in her life. Riddick had made Candace her responsibility and responsibility was one thing that Jack took very seriously.

"_And what about Riddick?"_ A voice in her head asked her. _"You need him."_

She shuddered. Yes, in some ways she did need him very much but she would never make him stick around under the circumstances. Those same circumstances made her feel very nervous, let alone him.

"You alright?" She had almost forgotten that he was there; she had become so comfortable with his presence. Shit, that was another problem she would have to deal with later.

"Fine." Jack nodded. It was a semi-truthful answer, small safe, simple and unexamineable. It didn't leave much room for unwanted conversation, or at least she thought that it didn't.

"Then what's with the fear?"

"You didn't ask me if I had been afraid." She answered with a shrug.

"I wasn't using the past tense and I didn't have to ask if you were afraid or not, I already knew that."

"Damn your heightened senses!" She said slamming down a leaver a little harder then she had needed to. "What gave it away this time?" There was aggression in her tone.

"What?" He looked at her his eyebrows raised.

"Oh gods!" Jack looked at him and took a slow deep breath. "I'm sorry. I'm not used to people being able to read me like that anymore. Things changed hellaofa lot for me after there was no you. I learned to look after myself, to hide what I was thinking and feeling and now I can't. It's not only that, I feel bloody transparent. I mean, gods, what is there about me that you don't know?"

"Not a lot." Riddick was frowning.

"You see through me, you know when I'm scared or upset or angry, you know almost everything there is to know about me except for the things I haven't told you about the past two years, the things that I wouldn't want you to find out about and the new scars. You have no reason to stay here, I'm not a child any more and I don't technically need your protection. I'm going to end up leading you into more danger then anything else if you stick around." She looked plain exasperated with herself. "Trust me; I am not good for you to be around at the moment."

"What do you mean?"

"Candace's father is a merc Riddick. When you made her my responsibility, I decided to find him for her and if I can't find him then I'll be the one doing my best to help a teenager get over her losses. You did it for me once and I'll do my best for her. If she has family out there, and I can find them then I will. She deserves a chance at having a real family." She looked at him desperate for him to understand. "I still don't know why you came looking for me after two years away from me in the first place. And I don't see how you would want to stick around now. I am a mess Riddick."

"That's why I am here Jack."

"You don't have to pick up this mess Riddick. You saved my ass and handed me a life, you don't have to try and pick up the pieces of that too." Jack shook her head.

"Do you want me to stick around?"

"That's not the point Riddick. You don't need to get dragged into my shit."

"Answer the fucking question Jack."

"Selfishly, yes, I want you to be around. I crave the way you make me feel, the safety. I'm sick of not being able to be myself and with you I can be me, I love that. I want more from you then it would ever be fair to ask and because of that I want you to stay. Doesn't mean you should."

"You wanna explain yourself a little clearer?"

"Not really." She shrugged. "Why did you go looking for me anyway? I mean, it took you two years."

"Dunno. Wanted to see how you were doing. Had a feeling you might need me."

"What happened to you not being a superhero?"

"Never claimed to be one."

"Did you find out what you wanted to? By finding me again."

"Not everything no." He answered truthfully and she clenched her jaw for a moment while she looked at him. It was a hard thing to take sometimes, his honesty that was.

"What is there that you still want to know? I'll tell you, all you have to do is ask the questions, only problem is you might not like many of the answers." She said a moment later as the autopilot program took over and she leaned back in her chair. She waited for him to say something, ask a question, anything but he didn't.

"What are you trying to do here Jack?"

"What do you mean?" She cocked her head slightly as she watched him.

"Offering yourself to questions."

"Making it easy for you to find out what it is you want to know, after that you can leave if that's what you want." She answered him. "I don't want to make your life more complicated."

"Who said I wanted to leave?"


	16. The Start Of Night

Hey all and welcome to chapter 16. Again many thanks go out to Pendragon4 for helping me along with some grammar stuff, I can never seem to get that down well. Also big thanks go out to my reviewers of the last chapter: a, cateye-120 and Pendragon4. Not to mention great thanks to everyone else who has reviewed me before, your reviews are the reason that I still write and update, please, please, please continue, constructive criticism very welcome. Keep giving me a reason to write.

Now on with the story.

Kayla

Chapter 16: The Start Of Night

Pain and people hovering over her seemed to be the two constants at that point in Candace Dalton's life, that and Jack's near motherly worry. The pain, she likened to getting her appendix out, though, honestly, that had hurt less, she hadn't been awake to feel herself be sliced through and then been knocked out for the operation. She sure as heck appreciated painkillers now, more so then she ever thought that she would.

At least now she understood why Jack was so haunted and also why she loved the big convict. He had saved her from the physical monsters and the monsters in her head. Sam had explained a few things to her during their time together while Jack and Riddick had been off exploring their past, things that the older woman had only found out recently herself. But she hadn't thought that the planet was as dangerous as her new guardian had made out, not until she had been attacked by one of the creatures that had been described to her. But then she was known to have to make her own mistakes before she could learn from them; other people's just didn't go down as well.

Well, she could admit when she was wrong, at least she had that going for her.

Candace turned her head as a pale but gently smiling Jack walked through the door with Dr. Loring. The doctor had been in and out of the room all day checking up on stitches and blood pressure, along with the print outs from the monitor. What those print outs said she wasn't sure. Sometimes he walked away smiling, others he had a worried frown on his face. She could only hope that there was little or no real risk of her dieing out of the blue.

"Come to put me into cryo?" She asked as Dr. Loring looked at her chart.

"Are you still in a lot of pain?" The doctor asked her.

"Could use a few tons of morphine." Candace shrugged, her tone level, serious but humorous. "Someone going to tell me what's going on? Am I going into cryo or not?" That was another thing that Candace was not known for, being patient, she just didn't have the energy or the calm for it.

"Or not." Jack answered. "Dr. Loring doesn't think that it would be a good idea for you to go into cryo-sleep. In which case, you get me as a nursemaid and I promise you I'm not the best there is out there. I'm a mean bitch when I wanna be so you had better not cross me." There was a smile on her face making the threat all but void but that was Jack's humor, serious but not at the same time. Candace liked it, she had found that she was at the very least safe with Jack; it had been a while since she could say that.

"Great, more people to baby me." The teenager rolled her eyes but was greatly relieved. Cryo-sleep might keep you young and put you out but it scared her, anything could happen without you ever knowing about it. "You know my mother stopped by earlier?"

"No, I didn't know. I thought that security had her blocked out, at least they were meant to. Did she give a reason why?" Jack took a seat, a frown on her face as Dr. Loring set to checking the bandages and the stitches.

"Not really straight out like that but she made it pretty clear that all she wanted was to gloat." Candace winced as the Doctor's cold hands probed around the carefully stitched wound. "She came in all smiles, took one look at me and laughed. I swear I would have punched her if I could but then she went all dead serious and said, _'I hope you don't expect me to pay of all of this Candace, you're not my responsibility anymore.'_ Then left." There was hurt and anger on the teenager's face as she felt again the scorn from her mother. What had she done to deserve her mother hating her? It didn't make sense to her, that just because her father loved her and tired to make sure that she was happy that she should be an object of hatred, it wasn't as if he hadn't lavished attention on his wife too.

"Do you feel too hot or cold or physically sick or like your going to vomit besides the obvious discomfort from the wound itself?" The doctor's blue eyes looked over her with concern.

"Just the pain. I feel like I was just run though." Candace answered him a look of scorn on her own face. What the hell was the doctor thinking, that it would just miraculously not feel like she had been ripped right through? And how the hell could you call that pain, obvious discomfort? It was a whole lot more then just bloody discomfort.

"Alright, I'll give you another shot of painkillers to take the edge off. Then you just have to lay there and get plenty of sleep." He smiled and covered the area of black stitching with fresh gauze; he busied himself with making more notes on her chart for a few minutes before turning and addressing Jack in his most doctorly manor. "Now, Jack, if you would permit me to look at your shoulder while you're here, the Captain said you dislocated it a few days ago."

"Try less then forty-eight hours ago and it was taken care of then, doesn't need any more attention then it already got." Jack eyed the kind man with sudden suspicion and Candace had to stop herself from laughing, it seemed that Jack was afraid of more then she let on. It made her feel a little better, if someone who appeared to be as tough as Jack could be afraid of a nice Doctor then her own fears didn't seem quite so bad, at least not her small ones.

"I was told that it was re-set but you could have damaged it further since the event since it does not seem that you have taken things very easily. It can't have been easy to keep it stationary while driving sand buggies and piloting a large cargo ship." He insisted but Candace watched as Jack shook her head firmly. Why did Jack have to always be so bloody stubborn?

"I realized that Dr. Loring but I'm not a good with doctors. The person who set the shoulder had a hard enough time patching me up when I hurt it and when I did the damage to my face. But they knew what they were doing. I'm fine." Jack said sternly. "I don't need anymore help."

"She has trust issues." Candace looked at the doctor and shrugged giggling while she did it. She didn't actually know where the thoughts and words were coming from, they just flowed out of her mouth before she could stop them and that made her want to giggle harder. "She only trusts one man and he isn't here to convince her to let you help her out a bit. She doesn't take help well either, doesn't matter who is offering that help."

"Shut up Candy." Jack snapped and the girl laughed again as she was scowled at. For some reason or another she just couldn't stay serious at that moment in time.

"Just let him probe around a little, I'm sure your boy won't be that mad when the good ol' doc tells you that whoever did your work over did a rather good job." She advised.

"God, you're giddy."

"It's the drugs." Dr. Loring explained as he made a few notes on the makeshift chart again. She only hoped that he wasn't writing that she couldn't have any more of this particular drug mix, this was the first time in hours that she had felt no pain at all.

"It's the drugs." The teenager mimicked and smiled as she suddenly felt tired again. Her physical and mental condition just seemed to be all over the place, even to her.

"I can't talk to you when you're like this Candy." Jack shook her head but she was smiling, amused by the teenager's drug induced antics.

"Well at least I'm not feeling anything right now." Candace said honestly and then was suddenly deadly serious. "If I'm not going into cryo-sleep, does that mean I'm moving back in with you two?"

"Not tonight. You need rest and I have a feeling that tonight is going to be a little rough." Jack answered with a shake of her head.

"You finally admitted your undying love for him and now you're going to get down to, um...business?" She offered weakly after seeking for a right word and not finding one. Candace could feel herself getting a little giggly again.

"You have a dirty mind for a sixteen year old Candace." Jack laughed.

"I can't help it. I get that kinda thing from my mother. She happens to be a dirty whore."

"That's nice of you to comment on." Jack shook her head. "No, none of that will be going on in that room. I'm more worried about nightmares and my nightmares are no nicer to hear then to have."

"Oh." Candace actually managed to her credit to look ashamed of herself.

"Sam'll be in to check on you through the night if I can't. Sleep well." Jack stood up and left the room, making a note to talk to Sam about making sure that the girl's mother couldn't get in to see her again.

"It might not be a bad idea to get high or drunk tonight before you try and sleep Jack. Those nightmares were fierce when you hadn't come face to face with the things that were out to kill you." Sam said as Jack threw herself on the bottom bunk opposite her friend. "Careful on the furniture." Jack pursed her lips and stuck out her tongue in a childish manor that made Sam smile.

"Yeah, sure, great. High or drunk, Riddick would skin me alive for doing something like that." Jack pulled the vial of red liquid out of her vest jacket pocket, slightly amazed that it hadn't smashed yet with everything that had happened in the last few days. Suddenly the idea wasn't as absurd as it had been only moments before; in fact it was quite appealing. "Or I could get high and spend the night in the gym, punching the shit out of one of those fucking huge bags until I can't do anything but sleep the sleep of the dead."

"When I suggested that you got high, I didn't mean on the shit you get from your friend." Sam took the vial from her and moved to the other bunk, playing with it in her hand in much the same way that Jack had been playing with it before. "I've got a better cure." She reached into a bag that she pulled out of a cooler cabinet to one side of the bunk and took out a beer with one hand. She took out a second and tossed it to Jack.

"This shit is contraband." Jack shook her head and opened the bottle. She took a sip and made a face as the grainy taste washed over her tongue. "It's not Stella and I just remembered why I only drink beer when eating pizza and watching shitty movies with Joe." She found a smile playing on her own lips and she wished she could glare at it and call it 'traitor'. Thinking about those stupid movie nights couldn't help but bring a smile to her face.

"When it comes to contraband it helps to be the security officer. Anyway, the rule only is, not to drink while on duty, just everyone interoperates that as no drink allowed. I mean, you've tasted the shit the Captain keeps and that's better then anything that I might bring aboard. That's besides the point, we're both off duty right now and adults so it doesn't matter what we're drinking." Sam shook her head and took a gulp of her own beverage. "So, why are you avoiding Riddick anyway?"

"Is it that obvious?" Jack closed her eyes and groaned.

"What happened? Before Candy went missing no one could have pried the two of you apart. You know you guys have people wondering if you're lovers and shit."

"I told him about what the good ol' Dr. Johnston said and then told him that I didn't need him to take care of it for me and he wanted to. Ever since then he's started hovering again."

"He's always been hovering hun. You've just not noticed it until now."

"So you think Candace is right?" Jack took another sip of the beer, trying to ignore the taste and let it relax her.

"That you have feelings for him?" Sam gave her an honest look. "Maybe. It doesn't matter what the kid or I think Jack. You know yourself, though sometimes I wonder about that, and only you can tell us if we're right. If you do so what? What's the worst that can happen?"

"He could leave again."

"Or he could stay. What scares you more?"

"God I'm screwed." Jack started picking at the edge of the blanket. "I already told him that I loved him, that I cared about him and it didn't exactly get a great reaction from him Sam. It's not like I proclaimed any sort of undying romantic feelings and he still gave me this disapproving look like, he didn't get how I could love him at all, that or he didn't want me to."

"It's my opinion that you worry too much. Let what happens happen and stop worrying about it. If you like him, you like him, let that take you where it takes you. You can either worry about it and screw it up or you can just relax and deal with whatever comes at you. Just try not to think about it as much as you seem to be" Sam shrugged and took off her boots. "You going to be tending bar for Johnny when you get home?"

"Probably for a while. You wanting on the guest list for the more exclusive nights?" Jack looked at her again, silently thankful that she had changed the subject. Sam was good at tactical subject changing; she knew the right things to say and when enough had been said. It was a gift and one that the security officer used well.

"Would be nice. You know, a pay off of sorts for all my good advice." Sam smiled and ducked as Jack chucked a pillow at her.

"How about I do you one better and get you a table."

"You mean one of those exclusive little alcoves?" Sam was grinning.

"Yep. I've got two of them under my name when I'm home. I'll just let Joel know to change it on the guest list. You and five others. It's not a bad deal. A little good advice for a very good seat in the best club in town if I do say so myself." She took another couple of gulps and set the bottle down while Sam opened a second. She had to admit, if she had much more she might just find herself enjoying the taste. "You still wanting to catch a flight home on _The Chancer _or have the latest events changed your mind?"

"And stopped me from wanting a ride home with a good friend of mine? I think not! Of course I still want to go back with you! Need I mention that a ride with you is free where as it costs to get a commercial shuttle down to the planet? What are you going to do with the teenager that Riddick acquired for you?"

"Find her dad for her if I can. If not, well, she can stay with me, if she wants to that is. I don't know what she will really want or not right now, I'm just speculating." Jack shrugged. "I've yet to put her options to her. There's not way I'm ditching her or forcing foster care on her, not unless foster care is what she really wants."

"Well, foster care might not be as bad as you think for her. I mean, she is a teenager Jack; they take time, energy and money. Your time is limited as is your supply of cash as for energy, do you have enough to deal with her and Riddick?"

"Tell the kid put on a ship heading for their first placement, a place in a totally different planetary system then you're used to, that foster care isn't as bad as they might think." Jack shook her head. "I was saved by the crash. She was saved by Riddick."

"You hate but love that crash don't you?"

"Got it in one." Jack finished her beer and put the bottle down on the floor. She rubbed the back of her neck with one hand thinking for a minute. "I don't have to really worry about money, I have plenty of that from before I thought Riddick had gone and died on me."

"What does that mean? You're making it sound a little less then legal Jack." Sam acutely looked a little concerned.

"You're right, it was a little below board but it was what we did to stay alive and under the radar. I know that Riddick wouldn't grudge me using that money to help her. After all, he helped me, I'll just be helping her in a similar way."

"If you say so Jack."

"I do say so Sam." She smiled. "Thanks for the beer, see you later?"

"Not a problem. I'll check in on Candace every now and then. Just try not to have nightmares tonight eh Jack?"

Jack stood up a gentile smile on her face, one that could almost be described as tired. "I have my best chance in that room with me." She answered and then was gone.

..._Darkness and sand shrouded her senses. It smelt hot, like an arid desert but felt cool like a pocket of cool air surrounded her. It didn't take a lot of imagination to know where she was and what was going to happen next._

_The sounds around her were muffled, like she was hearing them through ears packed with cotton wool but the sounds were fearful and sent her heart racing and her breath quickening. She felt like she was running and running, her legs and arms moving but she was going nowhere, like it was some damn funny gym exercise._

_Her throat was dry, she was desperate for water, for moisture of some sort but she knew there was none to be had around her. She could feel moisture on her skin, cool moisture but she knew it was only their blood, blood that was blue, deceptively the color chosen for water, blood that chilled her bones and felt sticky against her skin._

_There were others with her in the pitch black of the long night. Their irregular breathing could just be heard through the cotton wool packed in her ears. They were all running, and by instinct and experience alone, she could have recognized them all; Riddick, Imam, Carolyn..._

_There was no fire burning brightly or pale blue light this time, just the darkness, the blackness in which you couldn't see your fingers dancing an inch in front of your eyes, not unless you were Riddick and she didn't know what he was seeing all around them, truth be told, she didn't want to know what he was seeing, she could imagine it well enough._

_The creatures were there, the snapping of their jaws almost sounding like that of an angry dog snapping at the heels of an intruder. She was the intruder, she was on their turf, she should never have gone there! What had the stupid social work people been thinking putting her on that ship? The creatures kept bumping into her, toying with her, playing cat and mouse, until all that was left was fear; her mind was practically numb because of fear. _

_One by one the others were picked off without a sound of warning of their going, the telltale sign of their passing only the fading away of their presence. Finally she was alone._

_Why wouldn't they just take her too? Why couldn't they just get it over with? It was about time they killed her too! Couldn't they just stop playing with her and end it?_

"_We live on your fear." A high pitched but harsh scratchy voice said to her left. "We own you." _

_Then there was light, faint light but light enough for her to see by. She was totally alone now, the skiff was only a hundred or so yards away from her, only a little more in front of her then close. There were no creatures in sight, no hindrances. She could get off the planet, she could leave, she could survive._

_She wasn't fifteen, she told herself fiercely, she knew how to pilot a skiff, she had done it many times before. It was easy. All she had to do was get there. All she had to do was move her battered and bruised body to the skiff and she would be home free._

_Alone, she stumbled forward, moving toward the battered hull of the vessel. Tears were running down her dirty cheeks, her face red and swollen, tears of mourning for the dead, for those lost and left behind. Part of her wanted to give up, just not bother lifting off the planet and being alone._

"_No!" A voice in her head screamed at her. "You will obey your religion. You will survive!"_

"_A survivalist's number one rule," She told herself out loud, "is to survive." She chanted it like a mantra; with each footstep she was getting closer and closer to her goal of survival. It wasn't wrong for her to survive when the others didn't, it would just mean that she would have to live with it and she knew she was strong enough to live with it._

"_You shall not leave. We own you and we say that you shall not leave." It was the harsh, high-pitched voice again but this time it was in front of her rather then beside her._

_She stopped dead. Just ten yards from the skiff, just ten yards from survival, she had been stopped dead in her tracks. Fear paralyzing her motor functions. The voice laughed and out of the skiff stepped a creature._

_Its gray body was unaffected by the pale light. Its tail flicked from side to side like the tail of an angry cat. It's hammered head moved ever so slightly as its eyes swept over her. In some twisted way it looked elegant, even beautiful as it made its way toward her. She was caught in a trace, unable to move._

"_What god will you pray to now? We own you. We have marked you and we will never let you go..."_

Then her eyes flew open.

She was lying in the same position that she had fallen asleep in. She was lying on her back, a small distance from Riddick. One hand was by her face underneath her pillow and the other was resting lazily across her stomach on top of the comforter. Jack bit her lip and blinked a couple of times trying to force her emotions away. It didn't work, a tear slipped down her cheek. What was it with her a tears anyway?

Riddick's breathing was easy, it hadn't changed in the slightest since she had been awake but she knew that even that could be deceiving. He had a knack for deception. Sometimes, that fact in itself was enough to unnerve her a little. Sometimes she just wanted to be able to read him in the same way that he was able to so easily read her.

To hide her tears from him, she rolled over into her side and clutched her pillows to her body, wishing that she could order light on to full but she didn't dare, Riddick's eyes were too sensitive and then he would know for sure that she had had another nightmare and if she could, she would hide that from him. She licked her lip and closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of being awake. The feeling of being out of her mind and safe in the open.

Another tear slipped down her cheek.

"_Get a grip Jack!"_ She yelled at herself mentally and pushed it away with her fingers before another one could fall and start her sobbing.

"You have a nightmare?" The sound of Riddick's voice and the shifting of his body toward her making her sigh her defeat.

"Something like that." She whispered rolling over and coming face to face with him. A tired smile played across her lips for a moment, a smile that was much preferable to the tears in her eyes for her but he frowned. "Don't worry about it. It's not that big a deal. I'm fine."

"Those nightmares have always been a big deal Jack." He said flatly and raised his eyebrows.

"This wasn't a normal nightmare." She shrugged.

"And?" He pushed.

"And?" She gritted her teeth for a moment and he gave her an expecting look. She wasn't going to get away without talking to him about it. "And they wouldn't fucking eat me. They wouldn't just end it. It was told that I belonged to them, that they lived through my fear, which they fed off it. They told me that they owned me and that they wouldn't let me leave." Another tear slid down her cheek and his thumb gently wiped it away.

"They don't own you Jack."

"Yeah they do. They're my obsession; they have been an obsession in my life for a long time. I'm either afraid of them or obsessed. It's like I can't get them out of my head, like they haunt me or something." Jack clenched her jaw and her nostrils flared slightly as she fought to keep emotion separate from her words. "After Demedia and loosing you, I couldn't stop the dreams, you weren't there to fight the monsters so I drew and I drew...I don't know how many notebooks I've filled with drawings of them. Finally I figured that if I made the mark they made on me visible then it might bother me less, that they might leave me alone, that I might actually get a night or two of sleep every once and a while."

"The tattoo?"

"Got it in one." She shrugged. "Bret didn't get it. I think the whole thing worried him a little. But he never said anything; he just let me do what he thought I was doing to make myself happy. I just about killed myself in my first months at the academy trying to wear myself out so I wouldn't dream at night. When Sarge. found out, he put me on some herbal shit that wouldn't affect me when I was flying but that got me through the night. It was as addictive as hell.

"Until now, they've been trying to kill me. I'd wake up screaming because I'd almost been killed and scare everyone around me to death. And yet for some reason I just don't understand they feel bad for me. I even met a guy once, Jamie, because we got assigned to do a week's deep space flying together. He hated that he'd been paired with a girl. The guy's whole attitude toward me changed after he heard one of my nightmares. We were good friends until he died in a crash."

"I'm sorry." His mercury eyes seemed to be watching her face intently.

"I don't want you to feel sorry for me." She shook her head. "Shit happens and you get on with life as best as you can. I'm a lot stronger then I look Riddick, if I let people dieing stop me from functioning then it would have happened along time ago when Bret died and if not then certainly before that, when I thought that you had died. If I hadn't been able to deal with death Riddick, that would have killed me, you were my life line!"

"I wasn't trying to imply that you aren't strong Jack."

"Good, lets leave it at that before you say something that'll really piss me off." She smiled and was relived when she saw the corners of his mouth twitch slightly; at least he still had a sense of humor.


	17. Digging Through The Past

Hey all, here's chapter 17, am a little hyper at the moment it's really late at night I've only had 5 hours sleep in the last 48 hours and am waiting for a call back about a job while listening to Five Iron Frenzy. Major hyperness...lol.

Anyway, please, please, please, please, please, please review this story and would it be really sad to plug the other PB story that I've started. It's called 'The Fall' and it's R rated like this one but do check it out. Anyway do review, I love to hear what you have to say and enjoy this chapter.

Goodbye from your hyper, five iron frenzy singing writer.

Kayla

Chapter 17: Digging Through The Past.

"There are a couple of things that you might like to look at if you are sure that you don't want to sleep any more tonight."

"You're not going to push the issue Riddick?" Jack sat on the edge of the bed and pocked him in the side. He raised an eyebrow and caught her hand before she could retract it.

"I'm not going to try and make you sleep tonight Jack." Riddick shrugged.

"Let go of my hand!" Jack poked him in the ribs again but with her other hand and it too was soon caught and he flipped her onto her back with ease. She looked at him with a frown on her face and he looked impassively back at her.

"That was not smart Jack." He said seriously.

"I'm known for doing stupid things. I've been doing them all of my life." She shrugged but her eyes widened in surprise when he started tickling her with one hand, the other still preoccupied with holding both of her hands above her head and keeping them out of action.

Jack probably hadn't laughed so hard or been in so much pain for quite a while. The muscles in her stomach and side ached from laughing; her arms were tired from struggling. Tear tracks made their way down her cheeks, her breath was quick and sporadic and new laughter flowed out of her mouth every time that other hand moved, even if it wasn't anywhere close to her body.

Finally, she closed her eyes and concentrated on breathing instead. Refusing flatly to anticipate the next move of those fingers. She twitched a few times and heard the sound of his light chuckles but he suddenly seemed to have lost interest in their little game of cat and mouse.

His hand released hers and she felt his weight lift off the bed and heard the sound of his feet against the floor. She left herself lay there a while longer with her eyes shut, trying to work out what he was doing just by listening. It was a game she used to play when she was a teenager; she had lain around for hours when Riddick hadn't been around listening with her eyes closed, trying to interpret the sounds around her. She figured that it might come in handy one day and she prided herself in being pretty good at it too.

There was the opening and closing of a metal door, hands against tough or even rough fabric, soft thuds like padded weight hitting the ground. The sound of tiny particles bouncing off the floor, the sound of the metal door being closed again, a zipper being pulled back.

"What is it Riddick?" She finally opened her eyes, rolled over and sat up so that she was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed. He didn't answer her, just deposited one of the three bags that she had seen him load onto the sand buggy earlier on the floor by the bed.

Jack got off the bed and sat down on the floor in front of the bag as Riddick sat another one of them on the table and sat down himself, pushing the flaps of the already opened bag wider. There was a deep frown on his face and she couldn't help but wonder what was with the bags in the first place.

To be honest, she wasn't quite sure what to make of the bag; it was old, non-descript, totally average and very day. She pulled the zipper back and opened the bag. On top she found herself looking at a long sleeved teenaged boy's t-shit, the fabric slightly warn and small holes just above the cuffs where she used to stick her thumbs through, it had been a security thing, she had a big jumper back at home with holes in the cuffs that she wore when she was feeling like a tub of ice cream and a soppy movie.

"God," She whispered as she pulled the shirt and a pair of jeans that went with them out of the bag. It had been her only other set of clothes when the social work people had put her on _The Hunter-Gratzner,_ dressed and pretending to be a boy not to mention as angry as hell.

The day that they had come to pick her up from her parent's home, where a neighbor was looking after her, they had given her that bag and told her only to take what fit inside it. She had been assured that the rest of the things her parents had left her, along with the house, would be sold and the money put into a bank account, everything that was sold would be approved by her one living relative, an aunt dieing of cancer, the rest would be put in storage. She had quite the inheritance waiting for her if she ever decided to go back and claim it.

Jack even at fifteen hadn't been a fool; she had packed the bare necessities for herself and then packed mainly her parent's valuables. There were a few sentimental items along with all of her mother's jewellery in a hand made box, a number of other little things that her parents had treasured. Letters her father had written her and her mother when he had been away on business, her mother's three journals, fat with memories and tied together with ribbon. There was a family photo album, a few credit chips and paper credits and an old oak gun box with her father's small handgun.

"How did you get these?" Jack whispered and looked at Riddick who was happily going through a bag of odd shaped boxes that he had laid out on the table. He looked at her after he had put the last of the boxes on the table and deposited the bag on the floor.

"I wanted to get a few of my things back from Johns. I thought that you might want your things back too." His eyes scanned the floor around her; she couldn't tell if he was interested in what was there or just feeling plan nosey. There was something in Riddick that needed to know everything all the time; it had bothered her for a while before she had learned how to deal with it. "Doesn't look like much of it is yours though."

"Most of it is my parent's valuables and some sentimental shit that I probably couldn't have kept for long after I'd split from care." She shrugged, opening her mother's jewellery box and pulling out certain items and examining them closely like she had done as a child. She could remember laying on her mother's bed with her looking at all the different pieces and having her mother explain how she had gotten them and from who.

Her mother's assortment of rings, all silver or white gold were strung onto a silver chain along with the rose gold that her mother had insisted on for her parent's wedding bands. Jack's fingers sorted through them, fingering the cold, warn, smooth metals and was even surprised to find that a good number of them fit her fingers now.

She restrung them carefully and set them on top of the black long sleeved t-shirt before sorting through the rest of the jewellery. The last time she had seen those necklaces, pendants, earrings and bracelets, she had just lost her parents, she had shed tears over those items.

Methodically, she sifted through her past, not reading the letters from her father or her mother's journals but letting her fingers hover over the folded pages and lovingly warn covers. She let her fingers play with the carefully chosen and tied ribbon but didn't pull the ends to open them.

She collected the credit chips and paper credits together and sealed them in a small plastic bag. She would take care of them at another time. Now she needed to focus on the rest, clear the memories that were bring dredged up from the past.

Everything was handled with care and looked at, most of the time silly memories coming to her head like when she pulled out her father's carefully folded old Lameir Wolves hat and she remembered the way that he had used to come in after a hard day of work and put it on before he even had his suit off. His dad had given it to him on his twentieth birthday. She flicked through the photo album, wondering for a moment if Riddick would even be able to recognize the girl that she knew had been her. She looked so happy, so feminine. There were even photographs of her in skirts and dresses, two items of clothing she was pretty sure that Riddick had never even seen her in.

Jack traced the lines of her mother's face with a finger from where she stared out of the page. Imagined her walking through the door and sitting down on the floor next to her, taking her chin in her hand and examining what her daughter looked like grown up. Would she say how much she reminded her of herself? Jack pushed the question aside, it didn't matter, her mother was dead, she would never be anything like her mother. Her mother had been gentile, a homemaker, totally focused on her family and friends. Jack was a loner, she got people killed and only knew how to protect herself, she had no time to make a family of her own and wasn't sure if she had the desire either.

Eventually, even the photo album, along with everything else found its way back into the bag, except for the box, which held her father's old handgun. She remembered when he had brought that box home under his arm; she couldn't have been much older then seven. Her mother had thrown the biggest fit of her life, she had never seen her parents fight like that before and she remembered being terrified by it. Her father had won that fight; the idea that it might one day save her daughter's life was enough to silence her mother in the end.

It turned out in the end that that gun had saved her life. The stupid fucker that come into the house looking for revenge for one thing or another, waving a gun around hadn't expected her father to be there with a gun, he hadn't even expected him to know how to use it. Her father had shot the man, shot to kill and hit him too but not before he had shot her mother in the head and peppered her father with the rest of the clip.

Jack had watched the whole thing, running from her hiding place, where her father had told her to stay, to the top of the stairs when she heard the first gun shot. She had seen the vacant expression pass across her mother's face as the bullet passed through her brain, heard the groans of pain that her father made when he was hit. The gunman just hit the floor after the clip was empty, his dieing eyes watching her as she moved to her father's side.

"_You're my girl. Be strong for daddy." _Her father had said to her, even mustering a smile as his body shook and she looked at him with fear on her face. He had died in her arms before the ambulance had even gotten there. The man who had killed her parents had lived for three days before the decision was made to switch off his life support.

The gun was the last thing to be examined but it was also being looked at in a totally different way to then the rest of the items. She took it out, very aware that the last time she had held it she hadn't known what to do with it, and looked over it carefully until she was happy that it was still in good working order. She shouldn't see why it wouldn't have been. It had been protected in it's box deep in the bag for years. Time hadn't had a chance to touch it.

"What do you think?" Riddick asked.

"The gun will work fine again." She whispered, still reeling from her memories. "The rest, I dunno, I could sell it off I guess, put it away somewhere. I wouldn't know what to do with half of those things anymore. My life is so different now from what it was then." Jack put the gun back in its box and closed the lid. "Those things were the trappings of a life I wouldn't fit into anymore."

"What were you going to do with that stuff anyway? Not exactly what I would call practical for foster care." Jack gritted her teeth at the tone he used. It sounded like he was mocking her again and she didn't like it in the least. It wasn't like he was a mind reader, he didn't know what had been passing through her head, he didn't even know how her parents died, she had never told him.

"I would never have made it to my first foster placement. I would never have made it.." Her voice trailed off into nowhere, her hands were shaking slightly in anger as she set the box next to the bag. What right did he have to mock her? Even as she asked herself the question, she knew it wasn't him that she was really mad at.

"Jack?"

"Don't say another fucking word!" She zipped up the bag and stood up, grabbing a hooded sweatshirt and pulling it over her head.

"Jack?"

"I would have runaway first, flogged off her jewellery," A tear made its way down her cheek as she remembered her interrupted plans. "I had a friend for two years between twelve and fourteen. Emily was a foster kid. She had it rough too, half the time she didn't want to go home. She finally got moved away, I only heard from her once after that, six months later. She was abused for two years and only after that did she end up with decent folk." Jack bit her lip. "When my parents died, I swore that what happened to Emily wouldn't happen to me. I wasn't going to put up with abuse for a couple of years before finding somewhere I could be happy, so keep your damn scorn to yourself. I was prepared to run and run I would have. I was always good at running Riddick, I just never wanted to run from you."

"It might not have been that bad Jack. It might have been hell of a lot better then what you ended up with."

"Might have been hell of a lot worse." She glared at him. "Don't get all high and mighty on me Riddick. I don't want to hear it. I was happy enough with you, I don't think anyone would have prepared me better for what was to come in my life."

"You don't have to sell that stuff Jack."

"I have no use for that kinda shit. I don't get dressed up and go to garden parties and cocktail parties. I play with guns and party at clubs that people like my mother would never have set foot in. She was ten times better then...It doesn't matter now anyway. I don't dig through my past because of these fucking feelings. These memories are nothing but poison Riddick, I'm going to bed."

---

James Bradley walked into the bar at the space dock on New Mecca, the main first stop for people coming and leaving the planet. That day he had sacrificed his normal crisp and near uniform appearance for faded jeans and a t-shirt with a baseball cap pulled down hiding his eyes. It was a place he didn't particularly want to be but he had a man to track down and New Mecca had been his last known destination, the place that he was meant to have set up home.

In his hunt for Riddick, Jack had become a central interest. The girl was his most solid connection to the murderer. She would end up becoming his lure he was more then sure. But for James Bradley to be able to get the girl to help him, voluntarily or not, he need to know more about her. That included knowing about the people from her past and this person from her past was particularly interesting, this person from her past knew Riddick also, not as well as her, but knew him nonetheless.

He looked like most of the other patrons spending their hard earned credits in the bar that night. Only he wasn't like the rest, he was there for information on Jacquelyn Stewart from a man who claimed to know almost everything there was to know about her. The whole idea creeped him out a little since he was sure that neither she nor Riddick knew of the man's existence but he would serve his purpose.

"Can I get you anything sir?" The barmen walked over to him, wiping his hands on a cloth attached to his belt.

"Scotch on the rocks." Bradley answered him and watched as he scooped ice into a glass and poured the golden brown alcohol.

"Anything else for you at the moment sir?" He was asked as the drink was set down in front of him and he handed over the credits that it cost. Bradley sipped and shook his head letting his mind wonder back to his hunt.

The hunt was never far from his mind but then as far as he was concerned the hunt should never be far from any good merc's mind. It was the hunt that made James Bradley's life exciting, worth living and this was just another stage of it, another thing for his mind to wonder over and digest. His mind was never idle.

He let his mind wonder over the way that Jack had behaved and cross-referenced it with what he knew of her life with Riddick and about the convict himself. She hadn't been all that forthcoming with any information, she had been blunt and rude, she had shown hatred toward him and mercs in general, yeah, that fit in with what he would expect from someone who had been raised by the universes' most wanted criminal. The only thing that he couldn't work out was what the convict would have wanted with the girl.

Riddick was known for many types of murders and there always seemed to be a reason behind them but never in his criminal life had Riddick killed a child or women, just like he had never raped or pillaged like most other criminals of his stature had. Had he finally been sick and tired of having to pay for fucks and would Jack be the woman that she was now if that had been the case

Riddick had done quite a job on that particular teenager when he had gotten his hands on her and he had turned her into quite the adult because of it.

Poor little Jack, James Bradley mused the tone that his mind used was mocking; she wouldn't have understood what had hit her when Riddick entered her life. As he sipped on his beverage he wondered at her first reactions toward the man who would later become her guardian and teacher. Fear and loathing turning to trust, love even?

No other merc seemed to have gone after the holy man. They didn't seem to think that he knew anything of value; they had always gone after the girl. But Imam was as much a port of the girl's mystery as the girl was of Riddick's. But they knew that the holy man was as likely to tell them nothing as he was to tell them anything about the time on the dark planet and he would be sure never to talk about Jack, after all, it was he whom had abandoned her but then, he now had a family of his own with two young children. Jack would have been a part of a past that Imam would have been trying to put behind him.

But no other merc was quite like James Bradley.

Two hours later a tall stringy man walked into the bar, his too pale eyes scanning the room till they came to rest on Bradley. The two men nodded to each other and Bradley summoned another drink as the pale-eyed man drew near and sat down on the stool next to him.

"Mr. Bradley?" The tall skinny man asked, he was nothing to look at with lank hair and sallow skin, he leaned up against the top of the bar resting his chin on his palm, those eyes looking at him with curiosity.

"Depends on who wants to know." James Bradley was the type of man who had made more enemies then he had friends. In his time as a merc he had even had a few hits put out on him. He didn't even trust his informants.

"You wanted some information."

"Do you have my information?" James Bradley asked, testing, always testing.

"You were looking for information on one Miss Jackie Stewart, twenty-two. She was trained by Riddick, a nasty piece of shit but nice to look at, around five foot seven inches tall, dark brown hair, green eyes. A passenger of _The Hunter-Gratzner_ and currently the pilot of _The Aurora_." The sallow skinned man answered him and looked around the bar out of pale eyes that seemed nervous.

"Perhaps we should get a booth." James Bradley grinned beckoning for the waiter as his pressed a hundred credit note into the lank man's hand. "What are you drinking?"

----

Jack lay awake next to Riddick, staring at the ceiling almost positive that he was still awake also. She wanted to roll over, to curl up and be closer to him. She wanted to feel comforted, to forget her distant past and replace it was the time when she was with him and let that act solely as her past, that time hadn't been as painful.

There was so much she wanted when it came to Riddick, high up on that list being love, acceptance and answers.

She could just see the conversation turning sour on her as she worked to get the answers she craved. The answers she craved about what Carolyn had done that changed him so deeply or how much she had had to do with the change that had happened in him. She wanted to understand what it was about her that made her un-expendable when she had believe that she was for all those years, it wasn't like she was anything out of the ordinary and she knew it.

"Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I thought you said you weren't going to push the issue."

"It was you who wanted to go back to sleep Jack." His voice rumbled through the darkness.

"What color were your eyes, before you had them shined I mean?" Jack asked.

"Brown. Why?"

"I bet they caught a lot of attention." She rolled away from him and clutched her pillow in a way that he found was characteristic these days.

"Not as much as the shine does." He shifted slight, closer, just a fraction but still closer. "You worried about more nightmares?"

"Nightmares happen Riddick." She answered. "Why won't you ever talk about what happened with Carolyn?"

"There's nothing to tell because nothing happened. There's no point talking about a non-event." He was curt.

"Yeah, it was such a non-event that it changed you completely." She said, her voice seeped in sarcasm. "You'd think that you're whole damned life was a total non-event the way you don't talk about it."

"A lot of it was a non-event. Given up for dead as a baby, foster care, the rangers, the murders, Slam City and my escape from salm." He answered, his tone a little more even then before but still cold. A shiver ran down her spine that he couldn't help but notice.

"I start these conversations with the best intentions and then I end up taking chucks." She rolled over so she was looking at him and he pulled her a little closer in a one armed embrace. "Riddick, I just want to understand everything, I want to know everything there is to know and asking the questions is the only way I know of doing that."

"I know. You always did want to know everything."

"I'm not that same fifteen year old anymore Riddick."

"Trust me, I am very aware of that fact."


	18. Options

Hey all and here is chapter 18. I'm just in from work after having a great day so i'm all happy and therefore here's chapter 18 posted ahead of the set date. Please please please drop me a review. This chapter will answer a few questions i'm sure about when things are going to take place, at the moment there are a few chapters between now and anything romantic...sorry guys but i have a timeline i'm working with.

Kayla

Chapter 18: Options

"What exactly do you need my help with here Jack?" Riddick crossed his arms and looked around him. _The Chancer _was a neat little ship; even he couldn't say that Jack hadn't done a good job with it. She had already turned one side room into a comfortable living space, re-done all the plumbing in the bathroom and all other technical work on her little ship was immaculately done and she was putting the finishing touches to the other room and bathroom. She was working like she was possessed by some work demon.

"Brute strength." Jack appeared with a huge grin on her face on the main deck and crossed her arms as she leaned up against the wall. It was the happiest that he had seen her in days and it made a smile want to appear on his own lips but he didn't let it.

Since leaving the planet a week earlier she had been up half the night almost every night with recurring nightmares that he couldn't begin to understand. Nightmares in which she was tortured or was forced to watch him or Imam being tortured and no matter how she ran they always caught up with her and claimed her as their own. Even the fact that he was there didn't stop those any more and it drove him wild seeing the fear in her eyes.

When he didn't say anything in reply to her comment, she gave him a slightly more serious look and uncrossed her arms. It was like there were times when she instinctively seemed to know what he was thinking and it unnerved him a little. She opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off with words of his own.

"Brute strength?" He raised an eyebrow. "Is that all I am to you?"

The words were a mistake; he knew it after he had said them and the frown reappeared on her face along with that look of defeat that she had been wearing for days. She looked at the floor, like to look him in the eye would be unwise and shifted her weight from one foot to the other in a nervous way that did nothing but bother him more.

She wouldn't even let him touch her at all any more and she never ventured to touch him. It just wasn't her, she had always been the type to need physical contact, she had pushed physical contact on him at the start of their time together until he grew used to the fact that she needed it. Jack had always been a physical person, needing hugs and touches to reassure her more at times then she needed words but it was like she had changed in less then a week.

Jack would barely speak to him after a nightmare and she wouldn't be comforted no matter how much she seemed to need comforting. She just lay as far away as she could from him and starred at the ceiling or the wall, usually the wall so that he couldn't actually see the look on her face. If a hand even came near her she shrank away from it. It didn't matter that he could see the need in her eyes or that she knew it was there. It was like the way she was just not dealing anymore and he could see her moving closer and closer to an edge that would be all too easy for her to step right over.

"I just need some help with lifting some of the stuff in there to the right places." Jack picked at some neutral colored paint that had dried onto the back of her hand as she spoke. Still avoiding looking at him, her voice soft but the words directed at the floor instead of him. "I didn't mean to insult you."

"You didn't, it was just a joke Jack. You don't have to walk on eggshells, you know that." Riddick walked up to the door so that he was standing level with her and looked carefully over at her. The closer he got, the more nervous she seemed to become and a little color touched her cheeks when she came to the realization that he was watching her. "There are some things that you need to hear Jack, you had better listen closely too because this is the only time I'm going to explain these things to you."

"You never tend to say things more then once anyway." She shrugged.

"Then lets take a seat."

"What? Do you think I'm not going to listen to you just because we're standing up?" She gave him a slightly sarcastic look. He could see her moving those defensive walls into place. _'Not this time Jackie girl.'_ He said to himself as he gave her a look.

"Then you'll know that I'm giving you my undivided attention." He said instead and walked to the front of the ship, sitting down in the pilot's chair. She followed him, he could feel the way that her body moved the air around her; she was graceful, light on her feet, her feet barely made a sound against the floor. She sat down in the co-pilot's chair and looked at him again.

"Just like old times." She shook her head but the smile on her face was genuine. They hadn't talked an awful lot, it just wasn't the way that Riddick was and Jack had seemed to handle it well, until the last week, she had never been withdrawn because of it, but when they did talk it was in the pilot and co-pilot chairs in _The Gemini_'s cockpit. That was during one of their conversations, a few days out on that skiff, while Imam was praying in that back that she had turned into a real person for him, not just a hero-worshiping kid. "We haven't done this for a while. What's on your brain?" She brought him out of his thoughts.

"We need to get this shit between us sorted and now Jack."

"What shit?" She looked at him, making it clear in that look that he was going to have to spell out to her what she already knew.

"Don't play games right now Jack."

"All this is going to end up in, is one or both of us saying something that we'll regret later." She gritted her teeth and looked at her feet, noticing the paint on her black boots as she did so. "I've already said enough and I'm not saying that I regret it, just that I shouldn't have opened my mouth. Are you sure that you wanna have this conversation?"

"Jack, talk to me."

"I'm sorry alright, I'm doing my best to keep myself fucking numb here but with you being all caring and trying to comfort me all the fucking time, I'm having a damn hard time of it. You know all this, damn, you know me better then anyone why the hell do you have to make me say it?" She shrugged and he could see the muscles in her jaw tightening and she was again, refusing to look at him. God, she could be so fucking stubborn sometimes, but then they had never had a chance to deal with feelings or emotions and part of him didn't want to. Part of him wanted to keep her where she was safe, both physically and in his mind but he knew he couldn't, knew that he was already in too far for that.

"Would you rather I backed off and didn't care Jack?" It was a challenge and he watched her stiffen and stare him full in the eyes. Those words had hurt her; he could see it plain as day on her face. The idea seemed to have struck her in much the same manner as the idea of him leaving her behind. She shrank from it, trying to hide from the possibility and yet rallied against it in the end with those big green eyes daring him to look away, daring him to just try and leave, to just try and back off.

"Don't you dare play that card. That's not fare." It was a snarl that left her throat.

"Who said this was going to be fare?"

"So what? You want me to spill my guts to you, explain my emotions and feelings to you? Beg you to accept me, to love me, never to leave me alone again?" She shook her head, her tone icy cold and angry. He was pushing her but she was giving up what he wanted from her. At least he hadn't been wrong about why she was pushing him away. Not that he had really need conformation to know the truth. "Already had enough of that. I don't pour out my emotions into a glass to be examined by myself or anyone else. You wanna know how I feel; well I thought that was obvious. You wanna tell me what the hell you're thinking for once because I'm sick of _always_ hearing my own damned thoughts."

"Now's not a good time for romance of any sort Jack, not for you and not for me. I will not just allow you to turn into a casual fuck." Riddick shook his head, it wasn't that he wasn't attracted to her, damn he was and was constantly being reminded of that fact but he didn't want to taint her, didn't want her to regret decisions made under stressful circumstances. Her personality meshed with his, mind that was as much the mark that he had already made on her as anything, at least that was what he kept telling himself.

"There will never be a good time, it's like the one who isn't capable of love trying to love the one who won't be loved. It doesn't work, there's never a right time. It's always hurt and heartache. Trust me, I've been there." She said. She shook her head, she didn't know how much she got under his skin, how much her words mattered when no one else's did. He almost hated how well she knew him, hated that she was never afraid of him but it also made him feel secure around her, made it alright for him to trust her completely.

"I am made of flesh Jack, believe it or not, I do feel."

"I know you do, I always have known that but there was always something cold about you, untouchable. It was easy then, before you changed, am I'm not saying that I don't like the change, I do, I can get a response from you now, it was just then I was safe from my own damned emotions. Come on, I've seen you angry, I've seen you as close to happy as I swear you've ever been and I've seen you content. I've seen you so mad you've nearly killed me and I've seen you worry about me. I've even seen you lay your life on the line for me. I'm the kid you protect, eternally fifteen, never to grow up. And believe it or not, I am happy with that, it means I get you in my life." She took a deep breath, not looking at him again. He had to stop himself demanding that she did look at him. He didn't want to stop her talking. "To me, at the moment, all that really matters is that you came back into my life. I don't care why you came or how you found me. You lifted a burden of guilt I was carrying. You've kept me safe and sane over the past two weeks. That's all I ever really wanted, anything else was just a bonus."

"But I can't stop your fucking nightmares any more and you don't let me get close. I can see you tipping over the edge again Jack and you won't let me help you. It's driving me mad."

"So, you're driving me mad." She answered. "We're even on that count."

"Even." He rolled the word over his tongue not sure if he liked the sound of it.

"On that count." She reiterated. "Nightmares are nightmares. I've lived with them for seven and a half years of my life, I'm used to it, I can continue to deal with it. I'm strong enough to stop myself from going over. I know how to help myself."

"You realized that you are the only person I've ever wanted to help." He hadn't been expecting her to react but the way she did made the ache of hurting her lessen. She nodded and a smile appeared on her face.

"Maybe the first you've been able to help but not the first you've wanted to. What about Carolyn?"

"I didn't want to help her, I tried to make her leave with me on that skiff Jack. She interested me, the way that she changed her mind so rapidly. One minute she was willing to give up the lives of her human cargo, the next minute she was risking all to save them. She said she would die for you and Imam. It intrigued me." He answered her. "It was worth it in the end. Did you know she caught me off guard and tackled me? Had to be the last thing I expected from that particular woman."

"We do have a knack of surprising those around us. It's the way of women, it gets worse the more strong willed we are." Jack shrugged. "Did it ever occur to you that she couldn't leave us behind because by that time she knew us? When the ship was crashing all we were was forty bodies. By the time it was only the four of us left she knew us, knew I a girl, that I was a runaway, she knew what had happened to my family, knew what I hoped to do if I ever got off the planet. Imam and her had talked in hushed whispers on a number of occasions. She couldn't have left us behind, we were real to her then."

"I had thought about it."

"You know that they planned on killing me if it turned out that there was no hope, that if it became evident that I was going to end up as bate anyway, they would have killed me instead of letting me experience being eaten alive."

"Imam mentioned it once. It didn't sit well with him that he had plotted the death of a teenager, even if it had been under the noblest intentions." Riddick watched her. She had said everything with as little emotion as she could muster. She was trying to keep her head cool, trying to stay numb as she put it and yet tell him the things that she almost instinctively knew he wanted to know.

"He wasn't a bad man. He just couldn't deal with the emotional baggage that went along with me when I was fifteen. He couldn't handle my nightmares because he knew that he couldn't stop them, knew that only you could. I hated him for the longest time because he left us. That scared me a little because I knew if the situation was reversed, that you had been the one to leave me then I would have hated you instead of him."

"You made that very clear on the one occasion that we visited him." He nodded. She seemed to like to talk about her past more then anything these days, like it let out the demons that were bothering her when it come to her own history. It was like he was some twisted sort of priest that she was confessing to, either that or she wanted to keep him close even if she refused to let him be physically close to her. She was a clever girl, she knew how to keep her distance and still keep him close.

"You know what Riddick. You're right, now's not a good time for romance. I have a job to do, a sixteen-year-old girl to look after and her mercenary father to find for her. Now is not a good time." The way she said it made it very clear that she was done talking for now. There was an air of defeated finality about her tone that made him almost want to shake her hard and tell her that he was wrong even though he knew he was right.

"Is there anything else?" She asked after a few minutes of silence. When he didn't answer, he watched her stand up and start to move away, back to the back of _The Chancer_ where the entrance to the room she had been working on was.

She didn't get far before he reached out and pulled her back the way she had come. Jack didn't say anything, just looked at him, her eyes wide and honest. The look on her face was one that he hadn't seen for a long time and it set him at ease. There was nothing behind her eyes but curiosity; there was no defensive wall or quick retort waiting to be let loose. She was just waiting for him to speak, wanting to know what he had to say.

"What now?" Jack asked finally and shifted slightly into a more comfortable position, still looking down at him. She looked uncomfortable being examined the way he was examining her. Taking in the good looks that she acted like she didn't know belonged to her, the curves, the hidden danger along with the innocence. "Alright cut it out Riddick. Either say what you have to say or let me go get on with my work. I have bunks to move into place, a monitor to..."

"Shut up Jack." He snapped.

"Sorry." It was said automatically, without thinking and it made him want to shake his head. She had nothing to apologize for but it seemed like she had made it a habit to apologize all the time.

"You going to stop shrinking away from all human contact or what?"

"You mean; am I going to stop shrinking away from you? Say what you mean." She couldn't stop herself from snapping. He just gave her a pointed look and she took a deep breath and released it again slowly, she hadn't meant to scold him but she had been right, that was what he had meant. He could feel the decision she was making and understood the implications of it. She was opening herself up to him, making herself vulnerable if she let him back in on all levels again. It wasn't easy to open the doors once you had forced yourself to close them, he understood that well enough. "No, I won't shy away anymore but, only because I trust you."

As he watched her leave, Riddick couldn't help but feel the full weight of that trust and knew that he would be a fool to play it foul.

---

"Do we have to play this dumb ass game? I'm no fucking good at it!" Candace complained as Sam moved her knight and checked her king.

"Watch your mouth kid. Jack might have too much on her mind to stop you getting away with that kinda language but I'm not about to let you away with it." Sam clipped her upside the head.

"Owe, injured one over here, would rather not be hurt more." She glared at the older women, it was highly unfair that she not only had to play stupid games like chests but also that she wasn't allowed to voice her opinions either. At least not in the way she wanted to voice them.

"You're not even bleeding anymore, get over it already." Jack's voice caught her attention and she could hear the amusement in her comment. The pilot was standing in the doorway, a particularly characteristic smile on her face, her arms crossed as she looked in at them all. There was a little bit of grease or dirt smudged on her right cheek and the white line of a new scar through her eyebrow from the fight with Danny stood out against another such smudge. Paint splattered her bare arms and hands and her hair was up in a messy ponytail.

"Doc hasn't taken the stitches out yet and I'm bored to death." She complained but there was a welcoming smile on the teen's face. At least she always had interesting conversations with Jack even if Sam made her play games she hated. It was her theory that Sam just hadn't found anyone yet that she could keep in one place long enough to teach and play at chests. That unfortunately made her an easy victim.

"You just going to stand there or come in and where the heck is your shadow?" Sam asked as Jack sighed and shifted from one foot to the other. Since Dr. Johnston's team had arrived onboard, _The Aurora_'s crew, by direction of the Captain, had ceased to refer to Riddick by name. You never knew when one of those scientists could be around, especially when it was likely that Jack was going to be there too.

Even Candace who spent hours and hours in one place all day had noticed it. Kirsten Leal had taken to timing her visits to correspond with Jack's. It was slightly strange how they seemed to record the woman's every move and mood, it was almost as if they saw her in the same light as one of their experiments. Just another one of their test subjects and it wasn't only Jack that it seemed to bother. As far as she had seen, Riddick had been getting more and more grumpy and short with everyone, not that he didn't come off that way when he was in a good mood, just that it had gotten progressively worse.

"He's outside at the moment." Jack frowned. "Sam, both of the rooms on either side of this one are empty, would you mind making sure that it stays that way while the three of us have a little chat about stuff? It's just that I would like to be able to refer to him by name and not worry about those stupid shits knowing where I am."

"You got it." Sam nodded and stood up. "You might however want to make sure that this kid quits mouthing off all the time, she starting to piss me off."

"Maybe you should both watch your language when you're around me then." Candace suggested as Sam left the room and Riddick walked in closing the door behind him.

It didn't take much of an imaginary twist to start Candace's mind running all over the place. The one thing that she was positive that was going to happen was that she would find out what was going to happen to her next and she wasn't sure she wanted to find out. She bit the inside of her lip as she thought about it, they would literally have to walk her into the foster placements before she would go and even then...

"Sit down Jack." Riddick put a hand on her shoulder and she complied, sitting in the chair that Sam had vacated.

Candace looked between them and grimaced when she saw the smile on Jack's face. Jack had told her about what had happened to her as a teen, her parent's death, being sent to foster care, the crash and the night on the planet, Riddick, everything and she had a hard time believing that she was still smiling at her, if they were going to tell her she was going to foster care that smile just didn't make sense.

Silence invaded the room and she looked down at her hands, picking at her steadily lengthening nails and not knowing what to say to break the silence. She resolved not to say anything, let them be the first to bring the subject up, she wasn't going to send herself into care.

"What's up Candy?" Jack asked her and she looked up sharply. Riddick had shifted his position and was now standing on the other side of her bed, his back resting up against the wall. It was amazing the way he had and could move without even making her aware that he was doing so. It was also a little bit spooky to say the least.

"Nothing's up, what did you want to 'chat' about?" Candace shook her head.

"I wanted to present you with a series of options." Jack's smile never wavered. "Considering everything that we've spoken about, I don't think that foster care was an option you were particularly keen on. Oh, and just so you know, Riddick and I have spoken about your father, he knows that he's a Merc and we're willing to look for him for you regardless."

"Mercs can be hard to find." Riddick spoke up as if trying to kill the hope rising in her throat but it was just the way he was she was sure Jack would say, he just said things the way that they were.

"But we will do our best to find him anyway," Jack gave the big convict a look as if to say, 'play nice'. "Until then, there's a spare room in my flat if you want it. It's not the biggest room but it has enough room for you I'm sure." Jack reasserted. "Or there's foster care."

"What if you can't find him? My father I mean." Candace asked, the look on her slightly pale face grave. She felt like she was bargaining, like she was testing the water before making a deal of some sort.

"Then you can just keep the spare room at mine." Jack offered her a look as if to question wither she was agreeing or not.

"And if you do find my father, Riddick's not going to ghost him is he?"

"Only if he gets it in his head that he wants to take me back to slam but I figure that if he gets you back he might just be willing to stay silent."

"He's not going to threaten your father Candace and he won't kill him, but he won't go back to slam, you understand Candy?" The teenager made a face but nodded her understanding. It didn't sound like her life was in danger but her father could be a little stupid sometimes.

"And what do I have to do in the mean time to be allowed to stay?" She folded her arms across her chest.

"School." It was Riddick who answered her, not Jack.

"And how do you expect to find my father? He's not exactly an easy man to find when he's on the hunt and knowing my dad, he's hunting my mother and I zealously." As much as the teen hoped that they would be able to find him, she knew her father. He was a master when it came to being discreet and staying hidden.

"Leave it to me." Riddick shrugged.

"So what do you say Candy?" Jack asked.

"I'll take the spare room but you might regret offering it to me later. I'm a teenager remember, I play loud music and make a mess generally." Candace smiled. "I might even try plastering the walls with posters. You sure you can cope with that."

"I'm sure I can manage kid." The pilot stood. "I'll see ya later, got some business with Manor to take care of." And with that her newest guardian and her friend left the room and her a little more secure in the knowledge that she wasn't about to be dumped.

---

"School?" Jack looked up at Riddick as they moved along the corridors; it had been the last thing that she expected him to say at that moment. To be honest, she had been collecting a series of rules for the girl to abide by but Riddick's idea had turned out to be better.

"I made you finish high school if I remember correctly." He gave her a blunt look as if to ask what she had had in mind instead but she just shrugged.

"You did." She conceded. "A chance at a future is what I remember you saying when you made me take those courses. I didn't understand why you made me do that at the time, didn't seem like it would do me any good. I mean, the training, the fighting lesions, the hacking shit and piloting, now that made sense to me but school, English, math, chem, and bio, that mad no sense at all."

"You could have gone to collage. You're grades were good enough. In fact in some areas quite exceptional."

"Well I worked my fucking ass off for those grades just to get a little bit of approval from you so they had better have fucking well been exceptional." Jack snapped but there was an amused smile on her face.

"Why the hell didn't you go to collage then?"

"And leave you, no fucking way. I planned to stick around as long as you would let me. I wasn't stupid, the minute I stopped moving about with you would be the minute you slowly started communicating with me and then boom, no more Riddick. I'm not stupid, wasn't about to land myself in that position. You were all I had, and it worked out alright didn't it? I mean I did end up getting my commercial piloting certificates and I'm very happy being a pilot." She smiled. "How do you think is best to find her father for her anyway? If I've got to bring mercs down about my ears to do it, I'm going to have to make arrangements for Kelly."

"How much time until your next flight Jack?"

"Three, four months maybe." She shook her head not totally sure and in the end ended up giving him another quick shrug. "I've got three months guaranteed, _The Aurora _needs some upgrades and repairs between now and her next flight and I'll get a week's notice before I'm made to leave the planet again." Jack stopped at a junction. "Can't be any more specific, the minute Manor gets a contract we get a weeks notice, the shit is loaded and we leave. Could get called anytime of the day or night, we're on constant stand by."

"Complicated system."

She shrugged. "I'm going to see Manor himself, I'll tell him you don't like his system much."

"Do that." Riddick nodded before moving off in a different direction and she went her own way too.

Jack still had that amused smile on her face when she was cornered by one of Dr. Johnston's male science assistance. To her he had always seemed more like a thug then an environmental chemist, mind, all he had ever done was harass her about the creatures and the planet. They were always after information, always trying to get her to give it to them.

"Ahh...Miss Stewart." He said when he cornered her.

"Don't 'ahh...Miss Stewart' me and stay well enough away, my patients in all of this shit is wearing very very thin." She let out a snarl as she was backed into a wall. Her hand instantly felt down her leg for the butterfly knife she had taken to carrying with her and took it from her place without him noticing. The guy was thick as bricks for someone who was so proficient in chemistry.

"You'd make your own life hellovalot easier on yourself if you just spoke with us." He reached out and touched a loose strand of her dark hair, wrapping it around one finger and then tugging the finger free again. "I would think that getting rid of those memories would help you greatly."

"Fuck you."

"That's an interesting idea." He nodded. A shiver ran down her spine and a little fear at the idea that he might just try more then talk to her. She glared at him; she was not going to encourage him in the least. She was not the kinda girl that would allow some guy to try and fuck with her. He'd end up very badly off she couldn't help but promise, she had a blade and she knew how to use it thanks to Riddick. "But really, I want to talk first. All you need to do is give us a little information. It's for your own good eh? We can get to fucking after that."

"How do you figure?" Jack found herself stiffening, playing on the slight fear, men like the one in front of her seemed to get off on fear and it made her sick. 'Sick fuck!' She commented to herself as his eyes raked over her body, settling on the slight protrusion that happened to be her breasts.

"Get over it. The more we know about that place, the more likely it is that we could make it inhabitable." The more he spoke, the closer he got to her. It was like he liked to tread dangerous ground. She tried pressing herself a little further into the wall as a hand slipped under the hem of her shirt and traveled across the flat of her abdomen, his face coming insanely close to hers. Until that moment Dr. Johnston's people hadn't gotten physical with her. But this man, he made her skin crawl, made her feel dirty. She looked at him with pure revulsion on her face.

"Don't fucking touch me." She snarled flicking open the blade.

"I think you like it." He said and then looked at her with wide eyes as her blade pressed close enough to his groin for him to feel it.

"I said don't fucking touch me. And when I say I don't want to be fucking touched I mean it. Next time you might be without those things that might be important to you." She reiterated as an arm rapped around the man's middle and threw him across the hallway away from her. It was an arm that she hadn't even been expecting to see and even though she couldn't help but be glad to see him, she was a little put out, she had had things under control and it would have been nice to finish it up on her own.

Riddick stood over the cowering scientist, silver eyes flashing in the dimly lit space. The blade of his shiv became visible as she moved from the wall to stand next to him, her own blade visible but the only word she caught him say was, "mine."

The scientist looked at her with a weird mix of pleading, fear and shock in his eyes. His eyes were a weirdly warm gray and she suddenly froze and a shiver ran up her spine. No man she had ever pulled a blade on or that she'd seen Riddick threaten made her freeze like that before. '_Buck fever'_, a voice in her head whispered and then another voice quickly countered it, '_go in for the kill_.'

"As I see it," Jack said to the man who was starting to sweat profusely, the smell of his fear flooding her nostrils and made her want to vomit. "I can let my friend here ghost you, I could even ghost you myself, mind," She played a little with the flat of her own blade as if she was considering her options, "That can get messy especially in confined places so we'll leave your death till later. Here's the deal, I'm not going to cut you and neither is my friend here but you're going to take a warning back to the rest of your fucking psycho friends that the next one of you to touch me is going to bleed for it. And if you do try again, you had better pray it's me who cuts you, and not my friend here, he's not known for his mercy. The only cut that he gives leaves a person dead or hurt beyond repair."

He nodded, blinking rapidly as a bead of sweat trickled into his eye. She could feel Riddick's eyes on her, could feel his hunger for the kill and as much as she wanted to, she wouldn't give into it. To give in to it, would mean to give into her own pent up aggression and at that moment, she didn't want to not have control. The whole thing would just turn into a huge bloody mess.

Jack closed her blade and stood up, backing off slowly as Riddick spoke to the man again. "Remember what I told you. No one gets away with threatening..." And then she was out of hearing range and part of her was glad too, she was pretty sure she knew what he was saying anyway.

"I should never have left you to wonder on your own." Riddick said to her when he joined her and the man had scuttled off. "Should have realized that they would get physical at one point or another."

"I had it under control." She answered him back, still feeling slightly shaky about the whole thing but unwilling to let him know that. All that mattered was that she knew that that man wouldn't have walked away with his balls if he had tried to push her further.

"Didn't look that way."

"Looks can be deceiving. You should know that. I can handle myself."

"What if I don't want you to?"

"Then you shouldn't have trained me quite so well should you?" She pealed away from him, leaving him in the shadows of the hallway.


	19. Home

WOW, this chapter feels like it took me forever to write a post. I don't know why but there were some things in it that I just didn't like not to mention my lack of time as of late to just mess about with my words. It sucks working a job, going to three separate meetings a week and trying to juggle a social life. Anyway, even though this took me forever to post it is still kinda rough so any help on improvements would be welcome. Some big plots stuff will be coming after this chapter so just hold on tight.

As always please do drop me a review, if it weren't for the reviews I wouldn't be writing or posting nearly as much so keep it up. Your reviews give me inspiration.

Kayla

Chapter 19: Home

Jack loaded the last of her things onto _The Chancer_ twenty-four hours before _The Aurora_ was meant to dock. Preparation kept her mind off the inevitably of the next few months. The anonymity that she had built up for herself and the safety within it had been shattered and now she had to face the consequences of actions beyond her control.

Damn Manor!

As much as she liked and respected her Captain for the things that he had done with and for her, she hated the way that he dropped her in situations that hurt her hell of a lot more then helped her.

Part of her wished that she could go back to the relative safety of being Kit O'Donnell. Anonymity was a gift given to few. She mused as she watched Riddick tinker with the ship. He had taken to never leaving her on her own and Jack had a feeling that Candace and Sam were in on it too somehow.

While she had been preparing her little ship that day, he had already re-charged the ship's power cells, even though there was more then enough juice to get them home. He had bolted down the bunks and helped her with a small plumbing problem. They had spoken little but it had given her the chance to study him. It was something that she couldn't get over, something about him screamed for her to constantly watch him, but then it had always been like that.

"Gods Jack," She had eventually chided herself. "You keep looking at him like that and he really will think that you're a messed up, love sick teenager."

But she found that her eyes still strayed.

"We're making good time eh?" Candace walked slowly up the lowered ramp. She had only been cleared by the good Dr. Loring for gentile exercise and walking a little bit, two days earlier but she still stressed and tired easily, not that she let that get her down. She had walked everywhere at least twice and had even been told by the Doc to slow down or she was going to hurt herself.

"We'll dock in twenty-four hours." Riddick answered her.

"Oh." The teenager lowered herself onto a bench and watched them work, Riddick re-fitting the power cells and Jack was putting her things away. "Thought it would be sooner the way you cleared your things out of that room Jack."

"At the moment, I really am tempted to just leave but we wouldn't make much better time then _The Aurora,_ Sam needs to clear the ship and I have to dock her." Jack said.

Much to Jack's displeasure it took near enough thirty-two hours to dock and clear the ship of cargo and passengers, which involved getting Candace's things and her mother signing her over to Jack. It had also involved avoiding Dr. Johnson and his cronies like the plague but they made it extremely difficult.

Finally instead of trying to corner her again, Dr. Johnston himself sent an envelope to her through Sam who gave it to her with little pleasure. In it were a generous amount of paper credits and a note saying;

_There's plenty more where that came from._

_You just have to help us._

_You know where I am, I know where you are._

Instead of sending him the money back, she gave it to Candace and sent her off with a station guide to buy some clothes. As far as she was concerned it made for good reparation payment for the damage they had caused the teen. Not enough but it would do under the circumstances and Dr. Johnston had seen what she had done with the money, she had made sure of that.

Jack and Riddick stored Candace's old things and her newly acquired possessions and started all the pre-flight while they waited for Sam to sign _The Aurora_ over to the station security.

"How long will it take us to get down to the planet?" Candace asked as she buckled up to take off.

"Roughly nine hours to get to the strip but it'll be another six before we leave. Jack likes to make sure her ship is in good condition before she leaves it." Sam shook her head.

"There's a bunch of movies and some games downloaded into the vid. console in the bunkroom. All your stuff is in there too." Jack said as Riddick steered her little ship away form _The Aurora_ and the station. "You going to be alright up here for a while Riddick?"

"I'll be fine. Do you have the auto-pilot programmed?"

"All you have to do is type command, keyword colon home. It'll take us to the point where I can start landing. I need to take a shower and deal with registration papers for Candace. No questions are going to be asked right away but I want to be prepared when they start being asked and she'll need them to enroll in school." He laughed as she unbuckled herself and went through to her own little side room that her things and Riddick's things had been stored in.

Sonic showers weren't exactly as nice as the real thing but she didn't feel like she could honestly wait till she got back to her apartment for a real water shower. By that time, she was sure all she would be able to do was collapse; she already knew she was going to push her body to the limits, she did every time she did a night landing though she did have the benefit this time of a few good nights sleep behind her.

Jack pleated her hair and adjusted the temperature before standing in the compartment and starting the ten minute cycle, letting the heat soak into her skin as the sound waves worked on removing the feeling of dirt and grim from her skin. She closed her eyes, letting herself relax, her hand massaging the muscles in her neck and shoulders, working out knots she hadn't even realized were there.

A yawn escaped her lips surprising her. She laughed at herself, she was so used to not sleeping for long stretches that all the sleep that she had gotten since Riddick had been back had thrown her body way off. Damn it! She shook her head again but a smile was still on her face. She'd just give herself ten minutes to lay down before she got her registration papers for Candace in order. She told herself as she rolled her neck and startled herself as a couple of the vertebra cracked. And there she had been, thinking that the extra sleep had been to her advantage.

A hand was laid gently on her shoulder and fingers gripped her flesh firmly. Jack lifted her head; her eyes fluttering open from her light doze and looked at herself reflected back in the reflective surface of Riddick's dark goggles.

"You know I didn't get the work I needed done, done." She said softly. "I fell asleep."

"I can see that." He laughed. "Don't worry, there will be plenty of time for paperwork later, it's time to land this baby." He rumbled when she looked up at him again.

"You might be better off in here. I'm going to need the lights on full after I've taken my nice little emergency remedy for tiredness." She said as she stood up and cast off the blanket, systematically testing muscles as she moved out of the room, Riddick following her only to stop in the doorway. She hadn't meant to sleep for as long as she had and was pleasantly surprised to find that she hadn't had any nightmares to disturb her sleep.

Jack moved toward the front of the ship, taking the small bottle with the red liquid in it out of her vest jacket pocket and drank it down in one gulp. The stuff tasted vile, not like the stuff that Joe normally sold but then, technically the stuff he gave her was safer then what he sold to his normal clientele. She couldn't get hooked on it. She hated relying on this stuff because she knew what would happen after the kick was gone and it wasn't nice, it was another little deterrent that Joe had installed in the stuff he gave his friends.

She pulled her sunglasses out of her pocket to hide the red tinge that came to the whites of her eyes and let the lights flare to full, illuminating the area around her. Still, Riddick didn't move. As her hands settled on the controls she could feel the juice kicking in, giving her the main rush. Her tiredness slipped away and a rush that could only be compared to adrenaline flowing quickly around her body started taking over.

"Cool it Jack." Riddick growled as the girl bound her hair up and fit the headset into place, her movements a little too quick and jerky for his liking.

"White Field Tower, this is Captain Kit O'Donnell of _The Chancer._ Bill Cody, it's your favorite fly girl coming in to land, please respond." Jack's hands deftly flicked a couple of switches and pulled a leaver, not understanding what the hell was taking her old teacher so long to respond, usually he was getting back to her with sarcastic quips the minute she started talking. "White Field Tower, this is Captain Kit O'Donnell of _The Chancer_. Bill, where the hell are ya?"

"_Chancer,_ This is David Cody of White Field Tower. What's _The Chancer's _current landing registration code?"

"Sending landing codes." She said as Riddick walked up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder before taking a seat in the co-pilot's chair. She looked over at him and smiled. He motioned for her to take off her glasses but she shook her head. "Where's Bill?"

"You're landing has been approved, come on in _Chancer_." The male voice from White Field Tower said. "Bill's at home sick. I was called in last minute to look after the airstrip. What's your approximate E. T.A?"

"One hour. Is hanger four ready for use?" She said.

"Hanger four is ready and waiting." And communication was ended.

"Take it easy kid." Riddick strapped himself into the chair he was sitting in as Jack clenched her jaw in concentration.

"I thought I asked you not to call me that again, a long time ago." Jack snapped, her forehead furrowed slightly as they entered the planet's atmosphere and the thermostat that monitored the hull's heat started blinking an orangey yellow color.

"And I told you not to get lippy Jack."

"Let me do my job Riddick."

The landing as it turned out was quite routine, not that Jack had expected anything else but she had managed to take on some of Riddick's pessimistic traits. They touched down and taxied to hanger four, their hull scanned for any devices that weren't meant to be there, the whole procedure taking roughly four hours. It was another two hours before Jack was happy to leave _The Chancer_ in it's hanger and load their things in her car.

A good number of people gave their small working crew of four a wide berth as they had gone about their jobs. It was something she wasn't altogether used to, the people who worked at White Field knew her and Sam but when she remembered just who it was who was working with them, she didn't blame the people quite so much. Riddick was an imposing sight at the best of times; his whole presence seemed to scream danger.

'_My friends are going to love this guy.'_ She thought shaking her head as she looked over at him at one point and caught his eye. _'Well, everyone but Johnny.'_ She knew what it was like when two big guys were forced into each other's company and the frustration on both sides that could ensue. Really, it was just what her friends needed, but they were used to her strange assortment of friends and she couldn't hope that Riddick wouldn't be an acceptation to their hospitality.

"How far is Sam's flat from here and yours from Sam's?" Riddick asked as she closed the trunk and he walked to her side, the key for hanger four held firmly in his hand as their two passengers climbed into the car.

"The whole thing will take a grand total of half an hour. Any longer then that and we'd be spending the next twelve hours on _The Chancer_. I remember just how bad your driving skills are and to be honest I don't ever want to be put through that again. I don't think you ever really grasped the fact that driving a car and piloting a ship are two totally different skills." She answered looking up at him and running a hand through her hair.

"My driving is not that bad Jack."

"You weren't the one in the passenger's seat Riddick." She said pointedly.

He gave her a level look but let the subject slide. "How much time left before you zone?"

"Two hours maybe, depends on the mix." She got into the driver's side then grimaced suddenly. "I take what I just said back, my head is starting to pound, I've got about an hour left before I will be dead to the earth." She shook her head and hit the gas, letting the car glide away from the airfield and toward the lights of the nearby city.

First stop Sam's, second stop home.

The city that she lived in wasn't huge but it wasn't small either. She lived right near the center, in a block of flats four flats. Around the corner was a small club called _Zion _that was owned by Kelly and Jonathan Marks, good friends of hers but most importantly it was a quiet neighborhood. Nothing that strange or murderous had happened in that part of town since the death of Bret Robson and before that there had been nothing.

It was generally a good place to live; the couple who loved above her had two dogs and fought all the time. The couple below her had a habit of having rather noisily company in the middle of the night but other then that, the place was nice enough. Her flat had two bedrooms, an open plan kitchen and dinning room, a living room, a small study and a bathroom. It was furnished comfortably and decorated completely by Bret. She had only made a few security changes after his death and added a small hidden vault where she kept her weapons or anything else she didn't particularly want just anyone to find.

They threw their bags over their shoulders and made their way up the flight of stairs that led up to her flat. She opened her door and put her bag down to one side in a little alcove where a couple of pair of boots were stored along with some jackets. But what no one who just looked at that little space would have guessed was the fact that there was a gun hidden behind the coats. Mercs didn't come around all that frequently but when they came around, she was ready to give them a very warm welcome.

"Candy, your room is first on the left, Riddick, first on the right. The bathroom is the last room on the left, kitchen and dining room are on your left, living room and study on your right. Kelly keeps this place pretty well stocked while I'm away so there should be plenty of food in the cupboards." Jack walked into the bedroom she had directed Riddick to and pulled open the top drawer of the chest of drawers, taking a pair of flannel shorts and a man's t-shirt that was well warn as Candace walked into her room, the door clicking shut.

"Bedroom's all yours." She said to Riddick as she left and disappeared down the hallway to the bathroom where she quickly changed and grabbed a spare blanket out of the drying cupboard. She walked into the living room and put the lights on full before laying down on the couch and letting her eyes close. It was more out of force of habit then anything else. She barely used her bedroom anymore, she had gotten so used to sneaking into the living room and sleeping on the couch there so that she could sleep with the light on during her time with Bret that she never broke herself of the habit after he was gone, that and she wasn't sure she wanted to be too close to Riddick now that she had a choice in the matter. Maybe by sticking close she was inviting more problems for herself.

"Come on Jack." Riddick's voice broke though her nearly sleeping mind a good while later, as his arms lifted her and he held her close to his chest.

"Put me down." She mumbled, wrapping her arms around his neck and letting her head rest on his shoulder contracting her voice. She could feel a small chuckle rumble in his chest as he walked out of the living room and down the hall to her bedroom but she was too sleepy to say anything about it.

"I can't keep an eye on you if there are walls in the way." He said as they entered the dark bedroom. The bed had been pushed up against a windowless, doorless wall, the curtains had been drawn across the window and the door shut firmly after them. He laid her down on the bed and she rolled over, snuggling under the duvet. The minute he had laid down and covered himself, she shifted slightly so she was closer to his warm bulk.

"I can take care of myself, I don't need you to." Was the last thing she had to say before snuggling closer to him and falling asleep.

---

Kelly Marks sat quietly on the floor behind the bar of _Zion_, counting paper credits into a lockbox, like she did every night after closing when there was nobody around to see her. She was a quiet ghost there days, keeping to times when the only people who would see her were her family and a core group of people, most of whom weren't all that legitimate as far as the law was concerned and who preferred the midnight hours as much as she did.

All of it was for her brother too.

She wondered for a moment if he would have felt the same about the girl if he had known who she really was, then she shook her head. Bret would have loved Jack anyway, the stupid fool. He didn't know what was good and what was bad for him, not that it had been entirely Jack's fault. The girl was protecting herself and had fallen for her brother while she was making sure she was safe. She had never meant for anyone to die, she had never meant for herself to be found again by anyone connected with her life with Riddick. Poor Jack had actually loved the criminal, his death had hurt her, Kelly was sure, as badly as Bret's death.

But it seemed that a girl like Jack wouldn't be allowed to be safe.

Kelly really did love the girl like a sister, why else would she have made sure they didn't think that it was Jack who had killed Lang. It wasn't like she could really get out much in that part of town any more anyway; she had sustained serious damage to her legs and would never be able to walk again.

All of it for her brother and the girl that he loved.

The side door of the bar opened and Kelly's hand gripped the gun by her side tightly but with an expert hand and she waited. She was on the mercs' wanted list, mind her bounty wasn't all that high but there was no way that she would be taken to a prison or worse, to a slam. There would be no way that she would survive. Hands gripped the bar tightly and the lithe figure of her adopted son landed on the other side, his startling blue eyes looking right into her's.

"God damnit Damien!" Kelly hissed putting the gun down again after putting the safety back on. "I'm going to end up killing you one of these days if you don't get careful and smart quickly."

"Naw, you wouldn't ma, you're no good at killin'." The seventeen year old grinned at the thirty-two year old women in front of him. Kelly and Jonathan weren't really his parents but he'd lived with them since they picked him up off a street corner as an eleven year old and had taken to calling them mom and dad. They didn't mind, he was as close to being their child as they were ever going to get and Kelly loved him like she would have her own child.

"That's not what the mercs think kido and I know fine well how to shoot a gun. I've spent hours doing it and as far as I'm concerned the mercs that come around here sniffing for my bounty aren't human." Kelly smiled at the teenager affectionately and he grinned back.

"Aye, well, that don't mean you could kill a person. You ain't cold blooded like Kevin or Jack." Damien cocked his head to one side, his golden colored bangs falling across one eye. There were times when he reminded Kelly of a little golden retriever puppy dog and that was one of them, with his soft golden hair and big blue eyes.

"Jack isn't cold blooded Dame. If she hadn't gotten to Lang first, then I would have killed him. Bret was important to her." Kelly put the last of the credits in the lockbox and stowed it away. Jonathan would take care of it first thing in the morning like usual. Routine was probably one of the only things that had kept Kelly with her family as long as she had managed to stay.

"Yeah, so important to her that she has a guy in their house. A guy had a hurt teenager girl." Damien seemed to enjoy the look of shock on his almost mother's face. "We all know about her random string of skilled boyfriends but she's never let them into that house before, but this guy, it looked like she couldn't wait to get him up there, the girl and all."

"Was it Adrian?"

"Naw, Adrian might be a fuckin' body builder but..." The boy was cut off by a clip to the back of the head.

"Watch your mouth." Jonathan said.

Damien glowered up at him but continued. "But Adrian wouldn't know what to do with himself in a fight. Naw, this guy reeked of danger. Like he could kill a man by blinking, why the hell do you think I didn't go up there myself to see her?"

"You've been reading too many of your mother's fantasy novels." Jonathan leaned down and gently kissed his wife.

"Am not kidden ya. But she seemed more then happy for him to be there and he hovered all over her, like she needed his protection or something. It was weird. He pretty much ignored the teen." Damien sat down. "Had dark goggles on, covered the whole of his eyes. How much do you wanna bet he's got a shine job?"

"A merc?" Kelly looked up at her husband suddenly concerned more then shocked.

"Naw." The teenager shook his head. "Didn't move right for that."

"What are you trying to tell us Damien?"

"My guess is that he's a little less then kosher." He looked at them his eyes shining bright with excitement.

"You really do have your head in the clouds."

"I see things. You know I'm right, when have I been wrong?" Damien answered back. "He's probably some sort of crook or a killer or something like that." He ended lamely.

"You have no idea what you're saying Damien, this isn't something that you should be kidding about!" Kelly said and her husband picked her up.

"I'm not kidding about anything, not that going around there right now would be that good an idea. You won't get a word out of Jack. She was acting like she was coming off Joe's good red stuff. I figure she's safe enough, give her 18 hours." Damien shrugged and followed the couple up the back stairs that led to their home. "Like I said, the guy looked more like he was watching out for her then waiting for the best time to kill her. Anyway, red stuff or not, Jack can handle herself."

---

"Punk ass kid." Kevin Bentley said a number of hours later as he walked into the house and gave Damien a shove that sent him hurtling across the room. "Always getting in the way, stupid punk."

"Touch him like that again Kevin and you're going to get leathered." Jonathan grabbed the red haired man by the back of the neck and growled. "You're forgetting that I've beat the shit out of you before for touching him. He's my kid."

"Maybe you should have raised the kid as less of a wimp then." Kevin snarled back as Joe slunk into the room and into the kitchen. The lanky man sat down at the kitchen table and looked at Kelly out of red tinged eyes.

"Wanna give me a vodka and coke and info on why Jack's back so late?" Joe smiled lazily. His face was slightly pale, his long brown hair looked a little greasy and wet. Even when he was in the best of health he looked ill. It was something that no longer concerned the people that knew him but that had bothered Jack a lot when she had first met him. Like most people she had taken one look at him and wondered if he was going to just keel over and die right then and there.

"You high on your own mix again Joe?" Kelly poured him the drink and put it down on the table in front of him, her eyebrows raised. She had never gone soft on Joe for his habits, be that the excessive drinking and womanizing or his drug habits but she was the only one who ever truly got away with it.

"I like the stuff Kelly, do you blame me?" Joe let out an almost feminine giggle. "Tastes good and keeps you awake. Nothing can touch you when you're awake to get away from it."

"When was the last time you slept Joe?" Damien asked.

"About four days ago." Joe answered shrugging. "It was something else stumbling across this mix. I've only had to take two doses and I've been high as a kite ever since."

"Stop encouraging Damien." Jonathan ordered intercepting the drink and bringing it to his own lips for a quick sip.

"I'm not going to start taking his red stuff." Damien said. "What do you think I'm a fool."

"I want you to stop given your fancy shit to Jack." He withheld the alcohol until Joe actually gave him a serious look. "She doesn't need that kinda addiction floating around in her life. You know almost better then the rest of us that she has other stuff to deal with, with out introducing shit she shouldn't have to deal with in the first place."

"Last I looked Jack's a big girl boss man." Kevin snorted. "She can look after herself."

"Hell ya." Damien said as he glared at Kevin but kept a weary distance. "She knows how to stay away from you. She knows the right men to turn down."

"Watch your fucking mouth kid." Kevin lunged for the teenager but found himself face down on the floor with Jonathan looming over him a nasty look on his face.

"Don't touch my kid." Jonathan growled as Damien turned his attention back to Joe.

"Do you guys think Jack's stupid or something?" Joe looked at them through his slightly red eyes, eyes that looked almost feral. "The kid can't get hooked on the shit I give her and she doesn't tend to use it either unless she's making a night landing, which as you know isn't as often as she thinks." He looked straight at Kelly deadly serious. "Any news about where she's been. She was meant to be back three weeks ago."

"I don't know why she didn't come back before now so don't ask and from what Damien could see, she's high on your red stuff." Kelly said giving her husband a level look and the tall man handed Joe his drink back. "How long has it been?" Kelly looked at the sulking Damien.

"Twelve hours, thirty-three minutes and twenty seconds." Damien answered looking down at his wristwatch. "Give her another couple of hours before you go over there, all guns blaring. It might even be a good idea to let her explain herself before you pump lead into whoever is with her. You never know, you might just send her on a killing spree if you kill whoever is with her, remember, she has killed before and has proved that it doesn't take a lot to make her blood run cold."

"When I need you to tell me how to handle myself, then I'll ask you." Kelly snapped. "It's only one in the afternoon, just surprised to see you out of your bed already. I didn't know that you ever saw this time of day."

Damien gave her a look and snarled under his breath before stalking off through the house and slamming the door to his bedroom. Kevin started howling with laughter but stopped the minute that both Kelly and Jonathan sent him looks that would have killed if they had been given the chance and then Jonathan gave his wife a reproachful look.

"You shouldn't egg him like that." He said with a shake of his head.

"I know and I'll pay for it later." Kelly shook her head.

"You will have to go easy on Jack Kel, it's her home now. Bret left it to her." Jonathan said as Kelly wheeled herself through their kitchen and into their living room. "And just because she's really moving on with her life this time doesn't mean that she cares any less about your brother. It just means that she's moving on. Moving on is a natural part of life and she is still young, she has a lot of life left a head of her if she plays it right."

"I know Johnny, really I do know, it's just, if I were her and I had lost you..."

Jonathan didn't even let her finish. "It's not you or I we're talking about here Kelly, it's Jack. A twenty-two year old girl whose greatest fear besides the dark is being alone."


	20. Meeting The Family

Hey all here's chapter 20, brought to you with the help of cateyes. Hope you enjoy and do please drop me a review.

Kayla

Chapter 20: Meeting The Family

Jack's eyes fluttered open and she found herself staring at Riddick's well-muscled chest, watching it rise and fall as he breathed. She was curled up with her body pressed against his side; her head was resting on his shoulder and his arm was wrapped around her, his hand resting on her side. She blinked a couple of times, resisting the urge to rub her still tired eyes and let herself smile faintly for a moment before the arm around her tightened slightly signaling the fact that Riddick was awake again.

"Don't move." She said groggily too comfortable where she was laying to want to move, the effect of Joe's good red stuff leaving her with a headache.

"You've been dead to the world." He said as she felt a rumble of sorts ripple through his body.

"Is Candy up?" She asked closing her eyes but fighting the urge to fall back to sleep. Damn, she was  
comfortable. It made her dozy.

"Up and watching one of your old classics." She could hear the amusement in his voice but all she managed was an 'ummm'. "And what exactly does that mean?"

"It means that I'm tied, I'm comfortable and I've got a headache ten times fucking stronger then a hangover." She ran a hand over her forehead and rubbed one eye. "I don't care if I get hooked, next time I'm taking his feel good shit."

"Oh?"

"From what I understand it makes you feel quite pleasant unlike the safe stuff, though Johnny'll kill him if he were to give me anything but the safe stuff." She shook her head and her eyes flew wide open.

"A man who looks after his family."

"You got that one right." Jack nodded. "No word from the family?"

"None." He said and she was suddenly sitting up.

She had thought briefly about Kelly the night before when she had arrived at the flat but it had only been the swift thoughts of a mind nearly taken over by sleep. What the hell would Kelly think she was up to? Kelly knew about Riddick but she had never seen him and neither had Damien; the boy who was both eyes and  
son to Kelly and Damien didn't miss much.

"What is it Jack?" Riddick sat up, the sharp blade of his shiv glittering in his hand, the muscles in his neck and shoulders tense as he listened for betraying sounds of life. There were none and the glint of mercury eyes watched her as she threw the quilt off and jumped over him to land on her feet on the bedroom floor.

"Oh shit!" Jack chanted as she pulled a pair of jeans and a t-shirt out of the chest of drawers. "Get up!" She said exasperated as she turned and looked at him.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" There was annoyance written on his face as she changed quickly, barely seeming bothered by his presence.

"A lot is bloody wrong. Fuck! I should have sent a communication a head of me. If you dare harm anyone who comes into this house, I will be so bloody angry!" She pulled on a pair of socks and threw a towel at him. "Take a shower."

"Who am I going to hurt?" Riddick gripped his shiv and watched her as she moved around the room, cleaning up and making sure that everything was in it's place where she liked it. She looked at her bed for a moment where he was still sitting and then shrugged, she couldn't be bothered moving that.

"Johnny, Joe or Kevin probably, unless Damien decided he wanted to see me." Jack said. "You probably won't get the chance to hurt anyone because they're not stupid but you're very defensive at times so please trust me Riddick and don't get shiv happy. I got to get this house cleaned up too before anyone decides to come round."

"Your family going to be that desperate to see you?"

"You don't know my family, I do." She glared at him, a look that was totally harmless but made her point. "Go take a shower Riddick, you smell."

"Thanks Jack." Riddick gave her one of his sarcastic smiles and left the room.

Jack left her butterfly knife open on the kitchen counter as she opened the fridge and pulled out eggs and milk and threw them together in a bowl. Scrambled eggs for breakfast or was it closer to lunch? She checked the clock as she flipped the yellowy mix into the frying pan and heard the water heater kick in. At least he was taking a shower.

She grabbed a spatula and quickly scrambled the eggs on a high heat. She wasn't one to go in for cooking on any huge scale. Nice and simple and easy to clean up from was the way she liked her food, at least the food at home tasted a lot better then food on The Aurora. That and she could choose what she ate; protein bars didn't count as good food.

The flat that she lived in had been owned and refurbished by her late boyfriend, Bret. Most of the decoration in the flat was to a minimalist style, the colors were natural and there wasn't a ton of furniture. The rooms had no particular patterns to them and the furniture that there was tended to be old and comfortable. Bret had liked things plain and simple, she liked things simple and uncluttered so the flat's style had suited them both nicely. Even though she had made her mark on her home, it still was the home that Bret had left.

"Scrambled eggs are go!" She smiled taking the food off the heat and putting half of the simple breakfast on a plate and left the other half in the pan encase Riddick fancied having something to eat after he had finished showering.

"You slept late." Candace said from the doorway.

"Joe's red stuff, got the kick I needed with all the nice after effects." She explained and gave the kid a smile. "Movie over?" She asked. Fork and plate in one hand, butterfly knife in the other, Jack wandered through to the dinning room and started to eat. All of her senses went on high alert as the water turned off and she heard Riddick rustling around in the bathroom. Candace followed her.

"Yep." Candace nodded and sat down. "Who's Joe?"

"A friend. A dealer and producer. Scum of the earth type guy. He's always high on his own shit. One of the nicest people you will ever meet in your life. What you see is what you get and he's loyal to the point of stupidity." Jack smiled. "There's a picture of us all in the living room. I have shorter hair in it and Bret was still alive then but apart from Damien we all look pretty much the same."

"Is that why you told Riddick not to get shiv happy?"

"Yep. I don't want my family getting hurt." She sighed. The outcome would most likely depend on if they had noticed that she was back, and who came through the door first. If it had been Damien who had spotted them and seen Riddick then they would be facings a weapon's stand off. The seventeen-year-old boy was often times too perceptive for his own good. The kid was a smart ass, but he would make a good hunter if he found the right teacher. She could only hope that he didn't loose his innocence and choose the path of death.

"Any eggs left?" Riddick came through to the dinning room, his head and face freshly shaven and smelling like her bathroom soap. His dark goggles were pulled firmly down over his eyes.

"In the frying pan." She nodded. "Maybe we should go other there." She said a couple of minutes later, looking distractedly out of the window. Her mind wondering over a hundred different ideas. The teenager frowned and looked at Riddick but said nothing.

"Where?" Riddick looked at her from where he was standing, eating out of the frying pan.

"That's non-stick, don't scratch it." She said absent-mindedly.

"Where?" He repeated his question.

"The flat above Zion. That's the club that Kelly and her husband own. That way, they wouldn't come here and therefore you couldn't hurt anybody." She had a frown on her face and though she was looking at him, she wasn't seeing.

"I'm not going to hurt anyone unless they threaten me…"

"That's what I'm afraid of." She closed her eyes for a moment and opened them to look straight at him. She used to do that when she was trying to prove that she wasn't afraid, she used to try and stare him out but it was different this time. This time she was trying to let him know how concerned she was about the people that didn't know his capabilities.

"Not to mention that, but until the red tinge is totally gone from your eyes, I don't think that it's a particularly good idea to go out." He was frowning now, too.

"Must have been a strong dose if my eyes are still red." Jack chewed thoughtfully for a minute. "I'll wear sunglasses."

"Wait for them Jack." Riddick shook his head, his request more like a command and she was too used to taking them to say anything back.

"Why are you so worried?" Candace asked.

"Because the guys will come armed and if Johnny feels that there's trouble, he will shoot. He's the head of a family, he will protect that family." Jack answered her. "They are the closest that I have to family besides Riddick, and I would die if anyone were to get hurt. Them or him."

"Thanks." The teen said dryly.

"Not excluding you kid but you aren't going to be in sight when they arrive. I want you in the front room when they come and I want you to stay there until I say otherwise. I'll have some talking to do. You hear?" Jack was firm.

"Gawd, am I a baby or somethin'?" Candace complained.

"No but if guns are involved, I'd rather you didn't add a gun shot wound to the impalement." She shook her head. "I want you to stay out of that, alright?"

"Alright, alright, chill." The teenager shook her head as she stood up, "You know, you could just call them, you have a vid-phone in the hallway." She snapped and left the room.

"I wasn't that bad was I?" Jack looked over at Riddick. He shrugged and shook his head.

"You were always too afraid of being left behind to complain too much." He watched her play distractedly with the remainder of her food as he put the frying pan back in the kitchen. She sighed and took a deep breath. "Go try and call them."

She nodded and stood up, leaving him in the dinning room for less then five minutes before she came back  
and shook her head. "Got the answer machine." She shrugged, scrapping her plate into the waste disposal  
and putting it in the sink.

"You're really worried?"

"Yes, I'm worried. I don't want you hurt and I don't want them hurt. I don't know what I would do if you  
were to go and try and die on me again." She finished her meal and stood up. She rubbed her eyes as she put her plate in the sink and started playing with her blade as she thought. "I've thought about it more than it was probably good for me to think about it in the past couple of weeks. And I'm not just bringing it up because of today, and what may or may not happen but because of everything that keeps happening, that's  
happened over the years to people because of me."

"What are you saying Jack?"

"That I won't let you die because of me or for me. That includes today, which is why we're going to do  
things my way." She turned on him and snapped, flicking her blade open and shut, open and shut as she  
thought.

"Stop that Jack or I'll take it off you." Riddick growled. He was not happy but she didn't care, she had to work out a way to make sure that weapons were never drawn. She threw the blade on the counter, irritable.

"Now you happy?" She snapped and he just looked at her.

There was a knock on the door and Riddick stiffened, taking his shiv out of it's place with one hand and his other hand catching Jack's arm as she picked up her blade again and tried to move past him into the hallway.

"Not yet." He growled.

"Put the shiv away! Mercs don't use front doors but my friends do." She tried to extract her hand from his grip as there came another knock on the door, a little harder then the first but his grip was like iron and unyielding. This whole thing was getting old fast! "Go to the living room, keep Candace company. If I need help, I'll call you but I can handle myself. I told you, we're doing this my way." Jack flicked out her butterfly knife as if to prove her point and gave him a pleading look.

"I don't like this Jack." Riddick looked at her coolly. Jack shook her head and shrugged, a little bit of anticipation showing though her worry.

"You don't have to like it. Trust me on this?" She said, looking at his hand on her arm. He let go of her, the expression on his face never changing. "Thank you." She said as there was a loud bang on the door and she could hear male voices arguing on the other side. They never change, can never just knock once and wait. She thought.

Riddick was on high alert beside her as they walked down the hallway and he stopped at the door of the living room where Candace was already standing looking at the door with interest. "In." Riddick said to the teenager and she disappeared from sight. Jack stopped at her front door and was very aware of Riddick's shined eyes on her back. She shooed him away with a hand as she gripped the handle and undid the bolts.

"Hi." Jack said as she opened the door and saw not only the three men she had been expected but Kelly and  
Damien too. She smiled a nervous greeting when she saw them, but noticed they had come armed to the hilt. The four adults were carrying guns and there was a blade at Damien's side.

"Is that guy still here and are you in trouble?" Jonathan got straight to the point.

"So Damien did see us get home then?" Jack looked at the blonde kid and smiled with genuine affection as she sighed.

"Answer the fucking question babe so I can either split after we deal with what ever shit you've gotten yourself into this time or when you've explain yourself and Johnny boy here is satisfied." Kevin snarled. "I have other shit to do today besides get your ass outa a mess."

"No one is in danger, maybe you should have called to make sure before coming round here all armed and shit." She shook her head. "But you might want to meet my friends before you split and do whatever other stuff you got on today. Oh yeah, I've asked you before not to call me babe, so stop!" There was something about Kevin that always had and always would get Jack a little riled.

"Kel was worried about you, so we thought we'd make sure you were alright face to face, after all you are a few weeks late coming home." Joe shrugged, his words drawled out lazily as always.

"That's a story for later, you wanna come in or you just gonna stand out here?" Jack asked, as Joe gave her a lazy grin.

"You're eyes are still red." He said.

"You made the shit, aint my fault." She answered. "I didn't meant to worry you Kel."

"I know." The older woman answered and made the first move inside, pushing past the grim faced men in her wheelchair and made her way down the hallway until she reached the door of the living room, Jack walking beside her. Kelly looked up at her and smiled as Jack pushed the door open a little wider before they  
entered the room.

Riddick, dressed all in black like normal, was standing with his back to them, Candace was a stark contrast, dressed in blue and white, her skin pale from sickness, her blue eyes watching them from the couch near where Riddick stood. He had already drawn the heavy brown curtains and put the lights on dim. In one hand he held the wielding goggles he normally wore to protect his light sensitive eyes, in the other hand he held his shiv ready to use. It was one of those moments when she was able to see him as other people saw him and could understand the frown that was on Kelly's face as the two people stared at each other. He was quite the sight to behold.

"Next time," Riddick said slowly as his eyes stopped on her for a moment before scanning the four that had joined her and Kelly. "We do things my way."

"Why?" Jack cocked her head slightly, her tone as close to defiant as she ever got with him.

"Because you just let four guns and a blade walk right in here without a second thought." He rumbled.

"Sweet eyes." Jack heard Damien hiss.

"Don't even think about it!" Kelly, Jonathan and Jack all said at the same time and Riddick laughed a deep rumbling laugh that made Jonathan grip his gun a little tighter on reflex. Candace caught the movement and moved quickly to stand closer to Riddick, just off to one side and just behind him.

"You're fine kid. Men like that don't shoot children." He said softly. It amazed Jack how after all her mistrust, Candace sought out Riddick for protection more often then not when she felt uncomfortable. Riddick turned his attention to Damien. "There are benefits when it comes to eyes like these, you just have to work out if what you have to go through to get them is worth it kid."

"Don't you go encouraging that boy Riddick. His observational skills are good enough without letting him see in the dark." Jack moved away from her friends and stopped at his side, her hand reached out and touched his arm. She could feel the tension in the muscles controlling his hand and his shiv. "Put it away?" She whispered, never taking her eyes off his face even though he wasn't looking at her.

"Why the hell should he?" Candace said suddenly. Riddick and Jack both looked at her sharply. She blushed. "They have weapons drawn, why shouldn't he?"

"Don't worry kid." Riddick said smoothly.

"Chill Candy." Jack motioned with her head for the kid to join her but she shook her head, seemingly happy to stay where she was.

"Candy? Sounds like a hooker's name." Damien said and Candace snarled at him.

"Shut the fuck up!" She snapped and Damien laughed.

"Shut up Damien, you're not helping." Jonathan said softly.

"Jumpy thing, eh?" Damien was watching Candace with interest.

"You would be too if you were me. Ass!" Candace glared at him, her normal attitude resurfacing with a vengeance.

"I'm going to like her. She has the measure of you already and she's barely even met you." Kevin chuckled.

Riddick put his shiv away, but said nothing.

"Guys, meet Riddick and my newest charge, Candace Dalton. Riddick, Candy, that is Kelly, Johnny, Joe, Kevin and Damien." Jack made the introductions quickly. "No trying to kill each other please, I like you all the way you are. Without missing limbs and without holes."

"I thought you said that Riddick was dead." Kelly said.

"I'm a hard man to kill." Riddick's eyes looked over the woman.

"I'm sure." The older woman nodded. "And just so you know, a man called Steve Dalton was the last to come out here looking for our bounty Jack."

"Steve Dalton? Are you sure?" Candace blurted out her eyes wide. Kelly nodded. "That's my father."

"I'm splitting, I don't want to know anymore." Kevin shrugged and left, Damien keeping a wide berth of the red haired man as he walked past him.

"How the hell did you get you hands of a merc's kid?" Jonathan asked, the look on his face incredulous.

"Long story." She shrugged. "Not illegally if that's what you think." 

"Hey Dame, you wanna do me a favor?" Kelly asked.

"Not if it means leaving." The teenage boy answered honestly, his blue eyes roaming over Riddick with a  
hungry curiosity. He had been right, Jack had brought big danger into their lives, though he wasn't sure if it was the man himself or a danger that would follow him. Really, it didn't matter all that much, he was fascinated.

"Go get some pizza, take it home. Joe'll go with you." Jonathan said handing the boy some money. Joe shrugged after a look of protest was shot down by Kelly. "You want the kid to go with them?" He motioned to Candace.

"I'm not going any fucking where with them." Candace snapped.

"It's alright guys." Jack shook her head and Joe and Damien left. "Go to your room for a bit eh Candy, let the four of us talk?" She asked the girl and the teenager left without much protest, watching Jonathan with suspicion as she moved past him.

After she left the room the four of them looked at each other. Jonathan and Riddick seemed to be assessing each other in the way that two big men tended to do, but it would have been obvious to anyone that Riddick was by far the more dangerous of the two even if the extent of his killing career was unknown to the observer. Kelly however looked between Riddick and Jack and then her blue eyes settled on the twenty-two year old.

The girl stood next to Riddick, the same stance and aura seeming to radiate from her that always had. Her eyes were still watchful and it was obvious that she was uncomfortable in the situation but there seemed to be a newfound confidence in her. She didn't seem so paranoid standing next to the intimidating form of Riddick. Kelly couldn't help but wonder if she was seeing a glimmer of what Jack had been like before she had met her.

"Are you alright?" Kelly asked finally.

"Riddick's not going to hurt me Kel." Jack shook her head, a frown spreading across her lips.

"That's not what I asked hun." Kelly said and Riddick looked at Jack who had suddenly retracted her touch.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Jack shrugged. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, for a start, last time you were home late without telling anyone was when your flight partner at  
the Academy nearly got you killed during fight exercises. You have the child of a mercenary whose out for my bounty with you and she's been really sick recently and lastly, he's reappeared." Kelly said nodding in Riddick's direction. "No offense." She added and he inclined his head. Jack clenched her jaw as she felt Kelly get under her guard as she had the habit of too often doing.

"He showed up before everything went wrong, not long before granted but before. Candace came after, he  
acquired her for me. You'll find out that Riddick is a badass until it comes to kids, he goes on a killing spree every time he sees one being hurt." Riddick growled next to her but she didn't pay any attention. "Captain Manor took a job that meant we had to pick up some people from the planet that I crashed on as a kid. Guess who the lucky pilot got to be? My damned conscience got the best of me again."

"I'm-"

"Don't say you're sorry Kelly. I don't want you to be sorry, because it wasn't your fault." She heard her  
own voice crack slightly and cleared it. "I don't even want to talk about this now. Later if I have to, but  
not now." She watched Kelly nod and moved a little further from Riddick, hoping that he hadn't caught the  
look on her face.

"So is this a permanent arrangement? You, the kid and him?" Jonathan spoke up.

"Don't make it sound so sinister Johnny." She gave him a pleading look.

"Alright. What's the answer?"

"I'm not going anywhere for the moment." Riddick answered him.

"Yeah, it's permanent for the moment." Jack nodded her confirmation.

"You still going to tend bar for me while you're around?" He changed the subject for a moment. "You  
know your roster started three weeks ago?"

"Yeah, I'll tend bar, I always do." A smile appeared on Jack's face as she shook her head.

"What about you Riddick? You want a job too?"

"If he works there will be trouble. Mercs will be crawling all over here to find him. Someone will more than likely get killed." Jack snapped stopping Riddick answering the question. "I won't let Kelly get caught."

"They won't find me." Kelly shook her head.

"It doesn't matter if they do Kel, you didn't kill Lang and it's not your DNA they have on file." Jack said angry suddenly. "God, I'm good, always dragging other people into my shit." She snarled turning her back on all of them. "I bring death and destruction wherever I go."

"Cut the self-pity Jack, it won't get you anywhere!" Kelly snapped.

"I know it won't. I'm sorry." Jack ran a hand through her hair. "I just don't know how much longer you should take the rap for me. It's not fair on you or Johnny or Damien." She sat down, hardly noticing Kelly  
wheeling her way over.

"It's not like I can get out much around here anyway Jack, and as long as they don't get a hold of me, they won't ever come after you for that DNA sample that would make you guilty." Kelly lightly brushed the top of Jack's head with her hand. "There's a rather big night on at the club tomorrow night Jack, come as a guest, you and Joe always have a good time and I'll make sure that Luke knows you're back in town, bring your friend with you. If you want, Candace can stay in the flat and keep Damien company."

"Or rip out his throat." Jonathan added.

"Yeah, sure." Jack just nodded; part of her couldn't believe that she had blown her secret in one simple conversation. Kelly turned her wheelchair around and looked up at her husband.

"You ready to go?"

Kelly nodded. "I think Jack might have some explaining to do."


	21. The Lady Truth

Here is chapter 21, posted quickly before I run out to work. Thanks again to cateyes for helping me with the proof reading. Hope you all enjoy and do please send in reviews. It'll give me some more inspiration I'm sure.

Kayla

Chapter 21: The Lady Truth

There was silence in the living room after the Marks' left. Candace stood in the doorway, her blue eyes wide as she looked at the woman who had become a friend as well as a guardian. Jack just sat on the couch where Kelly had left her; lost slightly in her mind and the things that Riddick would undoubtedly give her a dressing down for. Riddick said nothing, he waited for her to speak but he wasn't happy, but then maybe she wasn't about to speak. Jack may have always been the one seeking out conversation, but she had also been known to go for a long time without talking if she got it in her head that she didn't want to for whatever reason. Once the silence had lasted for five weeks before she had put it to an end.

Maybe she had been right, maybe she hadn't been given much of a chance to do anything but follow his orders, he had seen how second nature it was to her, even now, two years having past since they had spent any substantial amount of time together. Maybe he hadn't been all that good at teaching her how to depend on herself but that was beside the point. He would certainly have liked to know what he was walking into before he found himself there. It seemed that she had more secrets then she had wanted to let on and yet all the clues had been there when she had spoken to him.

Jack had been stupid, instead of keeping moving and hiding like she had been doing with him, she had settled down, built a life for herself. Only, she wasn't being allowed to keep that life. She was always being tracked down and someone she cared for had already been killed. How long would it be before another one was hurt or killed? The ironic thing was that he had always wanted her to have something that resembled a little bit of a more normal life, but he knew that she would never really have it and that it was his fault, now that she was associated with him.

But then that knowledge came with experience and Jack hadn't been through the same shit that he had. She might have become tough, even cold and mean but even if she had killed, she obviously had been greatly upset by the consequences if nothing else. She wasn't heartless yet and he couldn't see her turning that way. The girl had too much heart for her own good at times, though he wouldn't have her any other way.

It was a strange bunch of people that she had allied herself with. The married couple and their kid looked like they had pulled through some bad times, the lanky man looked like he never came down from a buzz and the red head wasn't to be trusted with shit. They were a strange bunch; she would have been better off without them, although, Jonathan looked like he could handle himself. But obviously Jack had never come to the same conclusion.

"Did you really kill someone Jack?" Candace asked softly, her voice breaking a heavy silence that perhaps would have been better left intact until a better moment.

"Aww shit." Jack breathed, as if noticing the kid for the first time, breaking her code of silence as she turned and looked at the teenager.

"Jack?" Candace looked at her, her brows furrowed, concern on her face. Jack said nothing; she looked at  
her for a moment before looking away again.

"Jack?" Riddick turned his shined eyes on her, waiting for her answer but she didn't look like she was going to give one, she had gone back to silence and he didn't like it.

"Do we have to do this now?" She asked not looking at either of them. Riddick nodded and she tried one more time to delay the inevitable. "Are you sure that you want to know what happened because once I tell you I can't take it all back or tell you it didn't happen."

"I need to know what I'm dealing with here." He answered her.

"What? So you can split and save your own skin?"

"You should know me better then that by now." He growled at her, wondering why she had gotten into the habit of writing him off over the past week or so. It was strange considering she had always been the one to trust and believe in him. But that was another issue for another time; he had other things to deal with at that moment in time.

"Lang had me in a situation that I couldn't seem to get my ass out of, which is an unusual situation for me to be in. It was two nights after Bret proposed to me. Basically Lang was beating the shit out of me and the harder I fought him the worse the whole thing seemed to get, but I had no information on you to give him, I told him you were dead but like every other god damned sucker on your trail. He didn't believe me. How come they knew what I didn't?" She shook her head. "Anyway, Bret walked in on him. There was a huge fight, Lang made all sorts of accusations, told Bret who I really was and Bret, faithful to the end didn't believe him. I don't remember too much of what happened after Bret hit Lang for the first time, I got thrown pretty hard into the living room wall; the only thing I can remember clearly is the gunshot. The short of it is that Lang killed Bret and then split.

"Kelly turned up a while later, she was coming round for dinner. But I couldn't speak to her; I couldn't explain what had happened. I was in a rage and I was grieving, I wasn't thinking, if I had, it would have probably been a whole lot worse. I grabbed the closest weapons to me at the time, namely the shiv you made me before I thought you died and a blaster, then I tracked Lang down. The guy was a fucking amateur; I had found him within two hours. The stupid fuck went to a bar before going home, I followed him and he never even noticed me until I was inside the room with him. Kelly was close on my heals but didn't arrive until after Lang was dead but she saw the aftermath and I can assure you that it wasn't pretty."

Jack swallowed and bit her lip. Riddick had nothing to say but it didn't mean his mind wasn't turning over the information. Jack had killed, tasted the power of the hunt, the kill, she would be considered highly dangerous by any merc or cop patrol, that was if they knew who she was, what she had done and who she had been trained by.

"Where does Kelly fit into all of this?"

"Kelly was the only person seen leaving the scene of the murder, not that I think it's much of a shame that I killed Lang…it's just, I wish Kelly had never gotten involved, that she hadn't taken the rap for me." Jack said. "Two other mercs who have come sniffing around me for info on you have turned up mysteriously dead. Mercs aren't human." There was a strangled gasp from the doorway and Candace turned on her heal, flying  
along the hallway, her bedroom door slamming shut behind her.

With that last comment hanging stiffly in the air of the living room, she stood up and left the room, leaving him alone to think, to make something of what she had told him.

---

Jack closed the door to her bedroom and set the lights on medium as she started Alanis Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill" playing in the background. The music blended in with her memories as she moved around the room looking at things, making sure that the memories that she had cherished were still there where she had left them before she had left the planet.

Then she opened the duffel bag that Riddick had found for her on the planet. She lifted the clothes out and placed them neatly on the bed, they would be taken care of later, though she was still unsure of what to do with them. She pulled out her mother's journals, her father's letters, the photo albums and put them on a shelf that already had notebooks and photo albums on it that had been filled by her and Bret, some of her own dating back to just after the crash on T2.

She ran her fingers over the bindings, feeling the page, the thoughts and the emotions behind them. It was almost sad looking at them and knowing that she would probably never read her own again and that reading Bret's as many of them as were addressed to her would be like trying to re-live the past. Part of Jack knew that she shouldn't keep her's, that they could be dangerous to her but also to Riddick, but she didn't have the heart or the strength to get rid of them.

"You like to play with danger." A voice in the back of her head said softly as she paused on the one that encompassed the time she was with Riddick.

"It's all about control." She whispered as she picked up her mother's jewelery box, opened it and played  
with all the different pieces as she chose which ones would be put back in their original box and taken to  
safety and which would join her engagement ring in her own jewelery box. With her chosen items in hand she pulled her drawer open and took her jewelery box out, her fingers still playing with the links and smooth  
surfaces.

Jack dropped the pieces in and picked up the only piece that had been in there before. A simple white gold band, extremely thin with a blue topaz set elegantly in the center…

_"Alanis again? Was your day really that bad?" Bret walked up behind her as she looked at the ring, still snug in it's box, safe among the green velvet, safe from her emotions and the reality of the situation that it had been brought into unwittingly. _

"When don't I listen to Alanis? Doesn't always mean that my day was bad." Jack answered him and a smile came across her lips as she felt his lips brush the side of her neck, felt the slight scratchiness of a day's growth of stubble against the sensitive skin on the back of her neck and his breath across her collarbone.

"Did I ever tell you that you're beautiful, Kit?" His voice reminded her of silk as she turned in his arms so that she was facing him, the box still held in her hand. She smiled at him, she could see the desire in his eyes, the fact that it was her that he desired was the fact that brought that smile to her face. Someone actually loved her, it didn't cease to amaze her, everyday to turn and remember that the man with her loved her completely and totally.

"Did I ever tell you that you need to shave?" Jack reached up and touched his cheek with one hand, the stubble rough against her hand as he pulled her close and she wrapped her arms around his neck. They were both smiling. The whole thing was part of their routine, the light banter, the reassurance. It was more for her then for him but it made their relationship all the more comfortable.

"It's only a five o'clock shadow."

"It's well past ten." She laughed but was soon silenced by a lingering kiss that took her breath away. "I'm not kissing you again until you shave." She whispered after that had broken apart, her forehead resting against his as he chucked.

"You sure about that?" He leaned in to kiss her once more but she leaned back in his arms, confident that he wouldn't let her fall, a cheeky grin on her face that made him chuckle again.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I am."

"You really want me to shave that bad?" Jack gave him an impish smile and nodded as she closed the ring box, not having planned on it snapping quite as loudly as it did and she flinched when she heard the pronounced noise. He looked at it and sighed deeply, a frown on his face. "I know you said that you needed time to think Kit but…"

"Then let me think Bret. My life is complicated, more so then you've ever-"

"Kit-"

"experienced. People who enter my life-"

"Kit!"

"What?" Jack frowned and looked at him. He had a way of pulling her up when she was getting carried away but she didn't always like it. Sometimes it was just plain annoying.

"I've heard all of this. I just wanted to make sure that even if you need to say 'no' because you're not ready then you know that you won't loose me. Kit, I love you, you know that and if you're not ready now, there's always later. I'm not going to get all offended and leave you."

"It is a beautiful ring." She said wistfully and opened the box, looking at the ring again.

"You're not ready are you?" He said softly and she could hear the held back disappointment in his words.

"I didn't say that. I just didn't say that I was ready either. You've blown me clean out of the water with this one Bret. I'm a little surprised, in a good way. I just don't know if I'm ready for this kind of step." She took the ring out of the box and couldn't help but notice that Bret was holding his breath as she slipped it on her finger and examined it.

It fit perfectly.

'Mrs. Kit Robson.'_ Her mind said, testing the words and then the tone changed completely. _'Mrs. Jack Robson.'_ Then an angry yell broke clean through her thoughts_. 'Damn it Jack! He doesn't know who you really are; he doesn't know your name, what you've really done in your life, why you're afraid of the dark! He doesn't know who he proposed to, what are you playing at?'  
_  
Jack took a deep breath and slipped it off again, putting it back in the box and snapping the lid shut. It was safe from her sight, safe from her mistakes and still flawlessly perfect, the way it should be for someone who was perhaps a lot closer to perfect then she would ever be. _

"Not ready eh love?" He took the box from her and set it on top of the dresser out of her reach for the moment.

"Bret it's not that I don't-"

"Don't worry about it Kit. Later love…"

Jack slipped on the ring and looked at it, it was still beautiful as always. Perfect and flawless, the blue stone almost looking back at her and remembering what she was remembering she thought with a stab of old pain. She wondered for a minute what would have happened if later had actually been allowed to come. Would she actually have let herself become Mrs. Bret Robson? She took it off again, putting it away in the box and the box away in her dresser drawer as 'Head Over Feet' started playing.

She smiled. The words in that song made her think of Bret, more perhaps then she wanted to. She closed her eyes as she sang along.

_"…You treat me like I'm a princess  
I'm not used to liking that…"  
_  
She turned around to gather more of her things, only to come face to face with Riddick. She stopped singing and blushed crimson at the fact that he had caught her. "Music off, lights dim." She ordered rapidly glad to hear that her voice sounded clearer then she was feeling.

"You didn't have to turn your music off you know." He said.

"It's alright, if I honestly believed that you liked Alanis then I'd leave it on, but," She shook her head. "I know you don't. Angry girl music really isn't your style."

"Didn't sound angry to me."

"Not that song, but you haven't heard 'Not the Doctor' or 'You Oughta Know'." She sighed.

"Talk to me Jack."

"About what?" She sat down on her bed and looked at him. "I'm an open book, just tell me what you want to read."

"Interesting thing to say." Riddick watched her cross one leg as she pulled the other up to her chest, her arms wrapped around it, her chin resting on her knee as she looked at him. He had to double take seeing her sitting in that position. He almost could see her when she was fifteen, sitting on the bed while he packed his things, hers already packed and sitting at her feet on the floor. 'Where we going this time?' He could almost hear that young voice, filled with trust and curiosity.

"What do you wanna know?" Her voice brought him back and he realized that he was openly staring at her. A light frown of concern appeared on her face. She had changed. She wasn't fifteen years old, she was all woman now, still slim and fit but with the curves and enticing looks of the woman that she was. "Riddick?"

"Yeah Jack." Riddick said, and she got the uncomfortable feeling that he hadn't been with her for a moment.

"You seemed lost."

"Just a memory."

"This place is full of memories, some of them are good some of them are bad." She said and then shook her  
head. "Seriously Riddick, what do you want me to talk about?"

"I don't care, anything."

"This is about me killing isn't it?" Recognition dawned on her as she sat there. He wanted her to talk for the simple reason that he wanted to make sure that she was still who he had thought she was. He had known where she belonged in his mind when she was still the innocent, if slightly tough, girl that he had protected and trained. Now that he knew she had killed, knew that she had the guts to protect herself and the rage, aggression and calculation to carry out the act. He didn't know where she fitted and it made him uncomfortable.

"Killing changes a person." He answered her after a moment or two of time where it appeared that he was thinking.

"I'm not a different person from the one you know. I've had people who've kept me grounded. Why do you think I didn't leave here after he was gone? I wasn't stupid, it would have been so much easier and safer to leave, to hide and loose who I am, not to face the people who would be most shocked and hurt by what I had done. I could have done what you did, I could have left the human race far behind, I wouldn't even have looked back, it was the easy way and the fact that at the time I could have actually done it scares me. What would you have found then Riddick? It wouldn't have been Jack."

"I doubt Jack-"

"Don't doubt that I could have Riddick." Jack's tone was aggressive but laced with a pain she was having a hard time controlling. "I thought about it Riddick. I sat in the middle of Lang's rented room and looked at his dead body, I saw what I had done to him, every cut and slash. I was covered in blood, Bret's, mine and his, I was hurting from this wild slash that had come out of nowhere but it felt good to be hurting at that moment. I thought about leaving, disappearing, exploring the new emotions, letting the aggression take hold. I had decided to, just leave, leave everything and everyone behind and then Kelly walked into that room. She changed everything."

There was sudden silence. Her voice just stopped. There was nothing else to say, nothing else to explain, he knew now. He would have to work out what was left of the other Jack, if he couldn't just take her at her word when she said she hadn't changed anymore then in the fact that she had actually killed.

Her eyes lifted and she found that he was watching her, his face in the same expression as always, blank and devoid of emotion or anything else for that matter, only his eyes betrayed him. She could almost see his mind working behind them, processing the information that she had just given him. Just because she could see his mind working didn't, however mean that she knew what he was going to do or say next, but for once that didn't unsettle her.

"You feeling better?" He asked.

"Fuck you!" She answered him, a pointed look on her face. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of thinking that she was confessing to him or anything. She had made the mistake and she had taken ownership of that mistake as well as the others that had followed it.

"He really slice you?" Riddick's question came after a long moment of silence, the tone of his voice aggressive and protective all over again. Jack sighed heavily again and lifted her plain t-shirt to just below her left breast. A thin white scar about four inches long moving diagonally across her ribs and was still clearly visible even though time had dulled it's color. She looked away from him and let her t-shirt fall again, covering the scar and the rest of her flesh. "He's lucky he's dead." He growled and she smiled softly at his proclamation.

"Still so protective." She whispered.

"Why didn't you have it removed?"

"I needed the memory. I needed to remember what it felt like to turn. It reminds me that I don't like that turning, that, that isn't who I am, just something I have to do to protect myself and the people I love. It's not like I set out to actually kill someone. There's always a reason behind it and protecting myself and my loved ones is at the top of the reasons list." Jack explained.

"You wouldn't have this shit hanging over your head if you had kept moving instead of settling down in the first place. Didn't you learn anything from me during those five years?"

"You don't think I haven't thought about that? Thought about the fact that if I had kept moving that Bret  
would still be alive, maybe having fallen in love with someone else, made a family that he could still have. I have, I've ran it through my head a million times but I've found peace with it. I talked to Joe once; I was basically hating myself for the whole thing and he told me off, told me that Bret wouldn't have changed anything. Lang would more then likely have found me wherever I was, I would probably be dead now instead of him. Joe was a good friend of Bret's and I knew Bret very well, so when he said that Bret wouldn't have wanted that, I believe him." She shrugged. "I can't live my life by 'what ifs', there have been too many already for the time I've been alive and there will be too many to come. If I lived my life by them I wouldn't be living much of a life at all."

"Can't say you're wrong there."

"Have you finished telling me off yet?" She asked after five minutes of absolute silence passed.

"I'm not telling you off Jack, I just didn't want any of this for you. I didn't want you to have to live with the guilt and the pain; I didn't want you to ever have to experience what it felt like to turn. I thought I had protected you from all of that."

"You did. You taught me how to survive it. That was one of the most valuable lessons that anyone ever taught me." She said sincerely, turning to face him as Riddick sat down on the bed next to her. "You can't blame yourself for it, you weren't here. If you had been, I would never have met Bret or experienced what it was to have someone love me in the way that he did. I didn't love him the way he deserved to be loved, I couldn't, but he showed me what it was to love someone with abandon, whether they felt the exact same way or not. I wouldn't give that up for a clean record." She shook her head firmly.

"You didn't love him?"

"In my own way I did, just not like he did. He treated me like I was his everything. It was new for me to be loved and treated like royalty like he treated me. He always had complete faith in me. It was in it's own way very liberating."

"Interesting."

"Any more lessons today?"

"Lessons all done for now." He answered with a touch of amusement in his voice. "I'm not mad at you Jack, I just wish that you hadn't been forced to face that situation."

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. I've always been a little too aggressive, can't help myself so it seems. You know me, I've always like a good fight." A smiled crossed her face. "What's the deal now that you know what it is you have to deal with?" There was a tightness in her throat as she asked the question.

"My plans haven't changed. I've told you I'm going to help you find Candace's father and I will. As for after, we'll see what happens but I'm not going to leave you without giving you forewarning first." He answered her question and watched her face fall slightly. She had been expecting that answer, she had told herself that, but she had hoped that she wouldn't hear it. He would leave, it was inevitable, but at least she would be allowed to prepare herself for it. "You're going to have some work to do when it comes to Candace though. The last thing she heard you say was that mercs aren't human. Her father is a merc and very human to her even if he isn't that human to you."

"I'll work on that. I didn't mean it the way it came out."

"What happened to _The Gemini_?" Riddick asked her, changing the subject as much for her sake as his own. Jack found herself laughing as she saw the curiosity on his face.

_The Gemini_ had been the rather large C class ship that they had traveled in for five years. It had three bedrooms, a living space and kitchen, a study and even a gym where Riddick had taught Jack how to look after herself in a fight. That ship had been her home more so then any of the dark, nasty, dingy places that Riddick had insisted that they lived for a time while he made enough money for their next time floating in the expanses of space.

"I thought about selling her for a long time. _The Chancer_ is just a far more practical little ship for a  
loner like me." Jack got off the bed and moved across the room to her chest of drawers again. She rummaged around in the top drawer for a minute before turn around and tossing him the key that she had found. "Couldn't bring myself to do it, would have been like selling off my very first real home, so I seal her up and locked her in hanger 12 and White Field. She hasn't flown for about a year but even so, she's in good nick, I go in there every once and a while to update things, clean up a little, make sure the drives still work and that the power cells are charged and engine would be ready at a moment's notice to go. Everything is still in there, just like you left it."

"Just like I left it?"

"All your books on the shelves, weapons hidden, clothes in the drawers. A lot of my most important stuff is still hidden in there, that would be the ship I would take if something went wrong here and I had to leave or get Kelly out." She shrugged. "You can go see it whenever you want. Bill knows I wouldn't give that key to just anybody, not to mention the pass codes that you need to get into the ship itself, so you won't have any problems."

"I always expect the worst."

"I know you do, doesn't mean you always should though."

"Did you change the codes?"

"No. Only you and I know them. As far as I'm concerned the ship is safe enough. Remember, I thought you were dead." She answered him and smiled. "The dead can't talk. I'll talk to Candy; I might just be able to explain what I meant to her. As far as where I fit in your mind, only you can work that out."


	22. Club Nights

Hello all and Merry Christmas, this is the Christmas installment and Chapter 22, this does not mean however that it is Christmas in the story, it's not. Anyway, the next lot of news is that the name of this story is going to be changed in the next few days from One More Step To Defining Moments, after an e-mail or two to Cateyes120, who has again proof read this chapter for me, we decided that Defining Moments fitted the storyline somewhat better.

Anyway, and as always, thanks so much for the reviews, they mean a lot to me and I love to read them, have I ever mentioned that they help give a little bit of a will to write? Hahaha, anyway, enjoy.

Kayla

Chapter 22: Club Nights

"You still going out tonight Jack?" Candace asked from the doorway into the bathroom, a small frown on her young face as she watched Jack bundle her hair up into a knot on the back of her head and pull out a small make-up bag.

"That's the plan Stan." Jack nodded applying silvery eye shadow and black mascara, turning her green eyes slightly smoky, a hint of gray appearing in them with the makeup application. "Riddick is being a stick in the mud about everything, which is lucky for you because it means that you don't have to spend the evening with Damien but it doesn't mean that I'm not going to go. Riddick has to realize that he can't avoid me for nearly two full days and still expect me to do as he tells me like I was a kid."

"Thank God I don't have to go over there. The boy's a royal ass!" Candace snarled as Jack pulled out her eyeliner, a lipstick and a tube of clear gloss from a very small make-up bag that had been stuffed in the cabinet below the bathroom sink.

"An ass?" The older woman looked skeptical as she applied the eyeliner. Halfway through, she looked past her own reflection in the mirror and looked at Candace. "Ever put on eyeliner?" Candace nodded. "Ever notice that you can't keep your mouth closed when you put it on?" The teenager laughed and Jack went back to applying her make-up, a smile on her face. She liked it when the kid laughed; it meant she wasn't doing anything wrong at that moment.

"Why do us girls subject ourselves to the horrors of make-up application anyway? I mean, if guys are so hung up on the make-up then why don't they date lipstick or better, foundation?" Candace picked at a little bit of loose wallpaper. Jack laughed as she put on her lipstick, the mental picture of Joe or Johnny walked along the road with their arm around the middle of a giant lipstick running through her mind's eye as she finished her own make-up application.

"Make-up is as much of a hang up for us girls as it is for the guys, I've known too many girls who would get up an hour or two earlier then the rest of us at the academy just to put on make-up. Anyway, all it really is is the means to an end. It's not like I'm going out on the pull or anything, but I am going to a club and there are dress codes at clubs hun." Jack rubbed her lips together before applying the clear gloss and letting down the hair that she had spent what seemed like forever straightening, satisfied that the time she had had it up hadn't put any kinks in it.

"Dressed like that?"

"What? Every girl likes to be noticed. It's not like I'm taken or anything, so I can afford to have a little bit of fun." Jack ran her fingers though her hair a couple of times before looking at herself critically in the mirror and turning around with a slight frown on her face.

"What about Riddick?"

"Doesn't have time to love anyone." Jack answered and shrugged as she looked at the teen, it was matter of fact for her so it made it easy for her to say now. "What do you think?"

"You sure you're not going out on the pull? That outfit is going to turn heads in a big way, you look great in it." Candace shook her head incredulously, a half smile on her face.

"I'm not going out on the pull." Jack shook her head and reiterated firmly.

"'Cause you're already spoken for?" The teenager tried again, but Jack didn't even take the bate.

"Because I work on a 'look don't touch' policy." Jack fixed silver hoops in her ears and tied a pendent choker style around her neck. She fingered it for a moment before slipping on a couple of simple Celtic style silver bracelets to match the pendent. "Anyway, I've already told you, there isn't any time for love in the kinds of lives that Riddick and I have. You heard what happened to my only serious boyfriend because of me."

"Yeah, but Riddick is a scary bad ass. He's not going to go and die on you."

"He almost has before. This is totally off the point, Candace. There is no romantic relationship where you're looking so stop trying to look for it, Riddick and I have both agreed on that point."

"You've talked about it?"

"A while ago." Jack nodded. "Now enough, alright?"

Candace nodded and watched as Jack gathered the things that were to go back into her make-up bag, and put the bag back in it's place under the bathroom sink. "What does it represent? The pendent I mean?"

"It's a warrior's shield. It protects it's wearer against physical and spiritual evil. The knot represents the four elements, the four angelic guardians of the earth, the four corners of the earth and the four realms that are forever connected but never meet. In other words, North, South, East and West." Jack touched it again. "Iwas given to me as an eighteenth birthday present. Just Celtic superstition and sentimental value, it couldn't actually protect me from a lot but I like it anyway."

"True. Who gave you it?"

"Give you one guess."

"Riddick?"

"Yeah. It was out of the blue, thought my birthday was going to go unnoticed once more and it basically was until I was about to turn in for the night then he rather unceremoniously dumped a small wrapped box in my lap and told me the woman at the store wrapped it and that it was nothing fancy. One of the best presents I've ever been given." Jack smiled. 

Candace nodded her understanding. "What are you going to wear on your feet; you can't go out with bare feet?"

"Black boots, they're in the hall closet with my bag." Jack answered her as she smoothed down the front of her skirt, leaving the bathroom in favor of the living room.

She loved nights when she was able to go to the club as a guest rather than to work, they were excuses to do something different, meet contacts both new and old, get dressed up and have a little fun. She was dressed all in black tonight, but really that wasn't a shock, black was her normal night color. She was wearing a black pleated cord mini skirt that went down to mid thigh and rode low on her hips, her black top just went to above her bellybutton and only had one tank strap over one shoulder on which was attached a light flowing see through black sleeve that fluttered around her wrist, leaving her tattoo clearly visible on the blade of the other shoulder.

She extracted her knee high black boots from the hall closet, along with her bag and short cord jacket before taking a seat in the living room and pulling the boots onto her feet and doing up the zippers along the inside.  
"When you said black boots, that's not exactly what I thought of."

"Don't like stilettos and I don't do pointed toes, my stupid feet are big enough without adding inches to them." Jack shrugged as she rummaged through her bag making sure that she had everything that she needed. Credits, shiv, lipstick and gloss, a pen and an envelope with a note in it that she had to pass along to Kelly that night. "Anyway, if I got my ass in trouble, there is no way on this earth that I would be able to run or fight in three inch stilettos. Though, it might be fun to try fighting in them someday."

"Riddick's going to kill you for going out like this you know. The fact that you're sneaking about it isn't going to make things any better."

"I'm not sixteen anymore and I don't take orders for no reason. I've lived by my own rules for a long time, and unless Riddick has a reason he's willing to disclose to me then I'm going to keep living by my rules. They've kept me alive so far and will continue to do so. I'm an adult Candace, and I'm not putting myself in any position that I shouldn't be or haven't put myself in before. This is my life, I can't not make an appearance tonight, may I also mention that I actually want to go. I've been stuck on a ship and been taken back to the planet of my nightmares in the past two months, I deserve to go out and have a little bit of fun for once." Jack rolled her eyes, sick of having to justify everything.

"Don't sound so much like you're having to justify it then. You sound like you're a sixteen year old sneaking out of the house." Candace chastised.

"Never got to do that when I was sixteen. If I had done that, I would have been left behind." Jack shook her head. Candace would make a good mother one day if she ever got around to it. "If he asks where I've gone then tell him but he shouldn't be back here for a while. He's gone to get a few things of his from an old ship of ours."

"You really are sneaking out of here like a teenager." Candace scolded as a car horn blew loudly outside the apartment building. "Did you send him to do it now so you could leave or did he volunteer to leave while telling you to stay put?"

"That would be Joe, my partner in crime. I'll see you later. Won't be back till late or rather early this morning, around three or four, but if you need me you know where I am. Don't hesitate to come get me or call or whatever alright, I will come home if you need me?" She put her coat on and put her bag over her shoulder as Candace nodded with a shrug.

"I'll be fine."

"Glad to hear it. But really don't hesitate-"

"Just go before he gets back and your plans are spoiled!"

"Alright, I'm gone!" Part of her felt bad, Candace was right, she was skulking off like a teenager, but she didn't want to get into a discussion about going out or what she happened to be wearing with Riddick of all people. This night was meant to be fun for her, so she put the whole thing out of her mind as she practically skipped down the steps to greet Joe at the door a huge grin on her face by the time she appeared.

"Ready?" He asked giving her an apprizing look. "You look great!"

"You know it." She wrinkled her nose at him and nodded as Joe slipped an arm around her shoulders. "Just gotta have a bit of fun for once."

"And don't you deserve it." He let his arm around her tighten slightly as they made their way along the road to Zion.

It felt good to walk through the doors of Zion again, to hand her coat and bag to Brit to put behind the bar where she felt that it would be safer than in the cloakroom and walk into the main building. The loud beat of the music hit her; her eyes took a second to adjust to the different colored lights and the strobe light pulsing to the beat of the music. The alcoves were all filled with people, each alcove with a barrier and a man standing at it to stop unwanted guest from entering. The dance floor was heaving with people, all moving to the same beat only in different ways while artificial smoke rolled around their feet.

A smile broke out on her face as she leaned up against the bar and Johnny sent her a smile as he mixed drinks for a couple. One of the girls who tended bar stopped in front of them, two bottles of Stella in her hands, one which she handed to Joe and the other she gave to Jack.

"Missed ya, Kit. When you going to be tending bar again like the rest of us mere mortals?" She asked as Brit made her way past and winked at Joe. Jack laughed when she saw the look on her friend's face and elbowed him gently in the ribs.

"Sooner then you probably think, Angie." She answered. "What do you wanna bet I'll end up back there at some point tonight?" Angie laughed and shook her head.

"Johnny will bring your usual to your alcove when he's done here." She said. "It really is good to see ya again, Kit. And tell Johnny where to shove it if he asks you to tend tonight, you're never that great behind bar when you start getting tipsy."

"Thanks!" She rolled her eyes. "Don't drop any bottles Angie." She took a sip of her Stella as Joe's fingers intertwined with hers and they moved through the throngs of people, her body moving lightly with the beat of the music, as she scanned the people moving around them. She recognized quite a few of the people in the alcoves, mainly Joe's contacts and clients and Johnny's 'trust worthy' people, though it seemed as if the major had waved the right amount of cash around in front of Johnny's eyes to get his daughter a slot too.

"You looking for Luke?" Joe shouted in her ear above the level of the music as she took another sip of her drink and nodded.

"It's a dangerous game of sorts with one rule. Find Luke before Kevin finds me. Kevin doesn't mess with Luke, Luke is too good with a gun." She answered as Joe took the nearly finished bottle from her hand and gave her a nudge into the before mentioned man's arms. He understood the dangers. Sober Kevin knew what was good for him and kept his hands and his advances to himself, drunk or with a little bit of kick behind him, he didn't seem to be able to control his impulses but Jack never let that spoil her fun. She smiled up at Luke as his arm settled about her waist and he led her out onto the dance floor.

---

Riddick was ushered into Zion with little incident, easily bypassing the queue of people waiting to get in when a bouncer approached him and told him to go right through. Apparently they had been expecting him or at least that was what the man had told him. He had moved slowly through the crowded club, his goggles still settled firmly over his eyes to protect them from the erratic lighting as they hovered over the people looking for any sign of her. 

He sat down at the bar and looked around at the dancing people trying to pick Jack out from the mob. It wasn't hard to find her and it was damn near intoxicating watching her move. The grace she displayed while doing something as simple as walking wasn't lost on her dancing, if anything the dancing only seemed to enhance that grace.

"What can I get you, Mr. Richardson?" A female voice behind him asked and he turned around to look at her. She was a pretty little thing, very petit with short curly blonde hair and a quirky little smile. She motioned with her head to along the bar where her boss was working. "Johnny told me that you were a friend of his and to explain the advantages. Drinks for his friends are on the house and the top alcove," She pointed to the one that she meant, "Is reserved for those friends."

"I see." There was suspicion in his voice but that was over ridden by the offer of something to drink. "In that case, I'll have a Black Russian." Riddick answered her, turning his back on her while she mixed the drink, his eyes back on Jack.

Jack was moving seductively to the beat of the music, her hips swaying, arms weaving a hypnotic spell around her and her dance partner who looked as enchanted by the whole affair as Jack herself looked. At times her straightened hair fell across her face obscuring the smile on her lips from clear view but that didn't mean that it wasn't there or that he wasn't very aware of it. His blood almost hit boiling point, however, when a tall male with dusty blonde hair settled his hands on her hips and together they picked out a new beat, a beat that he set and she followed adding her own step or two as they went along.

"That would be Luke dancing with Kit. Lovely thing isn't she?" The barmaid had leaned over the bar and followed his gaze. "We were told that you had vested interest in her, but Johnny wasn't sure if you were her lover or not, but from the look on your face you either are or you want to be." He gave her a cold look that would normally have stopped the chatter of any person but this woman seemed as impervious to it as Jack herself. "I can read people well Mr. Richardson, it comes with my job."

"What would you know about it?" Riddick took the drink she handed him, never taking his eyes off Jack. She had her arms around the man's neck, her eyes were closed, his hand on the bare skin of her lower back supporting her as she moved into him, their hips closer to each other then he liked.

"Don't look so possessive. Luke's no threat, as gay as can be, not that you'll see him act the stereotypical part, but come on. I mean, what straight guy do you know that can dance like that?" The girl laughed. "There's only one man that Kit has to worry about on nights like this one and that's Kevin, he's a friend of Johnny's, if you haven't already met him. He's an ass at the best of times but he gets ten times worse when he's drunk and he thinks he's in love with her, not a good mix, drink and unrequited love. If you wanna sorry about anyone trying to take your girl from you, then it's him. That's what I know about it."

The song changed and Jack stopped dancing, motioning to her throat and then a seat area as she moved away from her dance partner, toward where he was sitting at the bar, her eyes settling on him as she moved through the crowd. She smiled at him as she reached where he as and her hand extended past him and then she pulled her arm back a drink was in her hand.

"White Russian too please Brit." She said to the barmaid who had been talking to him before and picked up the drink when it was handed to her. "Come on." She motioned with her head for him to follow her and loved off into the crowds again without another word or a sign then she knew he was behind her, but he knew that she knew his every movement as he walked behind her, he had entered a world that she was one hundred percent comfortable in and he was going to have to play by her rules so it seemed, she was just making it very clear to him in her own way.

He followed her, her lithe body moving in and out of his vision as she half walked, half danced through the crowds, people every so often almost totally obscuring her from his view because of the route that she was taking. The beat seemed to have as much of a part in intoxicating her as the drink in her hand let alone the alcohol she had undoubtedly already consumed before he had arrived. According to the time frame that Candace had given him, she had been there for close to three hours and he already had seen enough to know what she had been up to while she was there.

The sights, sounds and smells in this club were as strong and similar in nature to those of every other club that he had been in, in his lifetime. The air smelled heavily of alcohol and arousal, the flashing lights and heavy beated music was almost as effective in disorientating some of the clubbers as it did creating atmosphere that would lead to one night stands and drunken antics, but Jack seemed to have been more then enjoying herself, but then he knew her enough to know she was there not to become another notch on some guys bedpost but for her own ulterior motives.

With the ease of one skilled in dodging both the inebriated people and the young men who would, it seemed, having liked nothing better then to dance with her, Jack slipped through them all, weaving her way through the crowd, just in front of him. Always just in front of him, she weaved through the crowd, noticed but unnoticed. The crowd parted for him, like it always did in a somewhat unconscious fashion, it didn't take a lot for a person's subconscious to recognize danger. The smile never left his face, somehow drawing him on with her.

She walked through a barrier, having a whisper in the bouncer's ear before walking in and sitting down on the couch next to the man she had been dancing with before. Jack handed him the White Russian and he smiled gratefully as she leaned against his side and he settled an arm around her. Riddick sat down and looked at the man with her and then her. He didn't like the whole touchy feely thing that was going on and he was making that very clear.

"You came after all." Jack took a sip of her drink before setting it down on the table and entwining her fingers with Luke's, ignoring his glare completely.

"You do my head in Jack." Her eyes flashed angrily for a moment and Luke looked at them both, a frown on his face.

"Jack?" He asked.

"My middle name is Jacquelyn. He calls me Jack for short, something he's always done. It's just a nick name." Jack said quickly. Back to hiding who she was, Riddick noted, how interesting. "Luke, Richard, Richard, Luke." She introduced them and he couldn't help but find it strange to hear her call him by his first name instead of his last name. Luke extended his hand to him and Riddick took it after a look from Jack that told him just how pissed she was going to be if he didn't at least humor her and play nice with her friends.

"I thought you weren't going to come here tonight. We talked about it." He focused his attention on her again.

"You decided that I shouldn't. I didn't agree. I deserve to have a little bit of fun every now and then. So I came here and met Luke as planned. Live a little Richard." She took a gulp of her drink, draining most of what was left, as Luke finished his off completely. There seemed to be a signal of some sort working between then. "I'm feeling like another dance so unless you want to dance..." She left the sentence open and when he didn't move or say anything more Luke took her hand and she followed him back onto the dance floor.

Riddick picked up the glass she had been drinking from and breathed in the sent. Tequila Sunrise. A smile touched the corners of his mouth and he settled to just watching her, his Jack hadn't changed a bit.

---

"A little bit of a hostile character?" Luke asked as he spun her and she ended with her back flush against his front, one of his hands on the flat of her stomach. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. What was it about Riddick that always made a bad first impression?

"A little hostile, a little over protective, a little bad at playing nice even when he knows better." Jack turned her head to one side to look at him as she followed the body patterns that he was setting, the list at times could be totally endless. That was the thing about Luke, he was a decent guy and he could pick out a rhythm and pattern out of a beat and turn that into movement, all she had to do was follow and add movement that would complement his, and he made that easy enough.

They didn't get far into the third song before Luke's partner turned up for a few drinks and a dance. Even though he told her he would stay, save her from unwanted advances for a while longer, she refused him and sent him off happily into the arms of his lover with a smile on her own face as she watched him smile as he reached Brian. It was time for her to do a little bit of shoptalk with Johnny anyway and pick up her new rota.  
It was strange, for once she didn't feel like she had to watch out too much for very potentially bad situation, she could feel Riddick's eyes on her back as she moved from the dance floor to the bar where Johnny was talking to Joe while he mixed drinks. It was sad how aware of him she had become and how that awareness had made her feel more secure in herself, there went all of the independence that she had once had but then at the same time she felt safer.

She understood the price she had had to pay and strangely wasn't as upset about it as she felt she should be. Joe put a hand lazily on her shoulder as she came to stand next to him, her forearms resting on the bar as she watched Johnny work. His red tinged eyes blinked blearily at her and the smile on his face told her that he had had a little too much to drink even for him.

"You want some juice?" He asked her, holding out a vile of deep red liquid. She laughed at him and shook her head.

"I'm not on a night flight am I, Joe?" She shook her head. He was well gone, she could tell just because he was offering her his shit; he only ever went that far if he was off his face.

"Doesn't mean you don't want a nice, feel good kick." She bit her lip and gave him an amused look.

"None of your red stuff Joe but I'll take a Malibu and lemonade. Eh John, and has Kevin turned up yet?" Jack leaned against the red-eyed man, a small frown on her face. The arrival of Kevin would change the whole tone of the night; she would become far more wary when that man arrived and with good reason. He wouldn't be coming in sober and the likely hood was if he wasn't sober he would be on a high too and the combination of strung out and drunk was never a good one.

"He's here. Turned up not long after Riddick." Joe shrugged as if it didn't matter that much. "He's drunk as shit. Completely out of it and still madly in love with what he can't have, even in his dreams."

"I can have what I want to have Joe." Kevin announced his presence and slid an arm around Jack's waist, pulling her away from Joe's side and earning an evil glare from Jack in the process.

"Move your fucking hand Kevin. You're drunk and high and I have nothing to do with drunkards." She hissed putting her drink down on the bar a little more violently then she had meant to, but it got his attention as she continued to glare at him. He grinned and instead of moving away like she had asked him to, leaned in closer to her, causing muscles in her shoulders to tense slightly and for her to pull back from him.

"Back off Kevin or go sleep it off. I don't want you starting trouble in my club. Go get some air Jack, you look fare to chuck." Johnny said as he served a young man on the other side of Joe. He watched Kevin for a minute and then Riddick standing up in the alcove that Jack used caught his attention as Jack slapped Kevin hard across the face. "I mean it Kevin, let her the fuck go!" Johnny snapped as Riddick started to make his way through the crowds on the way to the bar. 

"The problem is she wants me." Kevin said with a weird grin on his face.

"The problem is I'm a temptress. You can look all you want but you can't touch. Not many can touch a girl like me and you're not one of the not many." She plucked his hand from her waist and moved away from him, leaving the club through the back door with a warning glance to Joe. Jack wasn't stupid; she knew Kevin, and Kevin would be most defiantly following her, even if it was in a round about way.


	23. Fighting Emotion

Chapter 23: Fighting Emotion.

"Why can't you just give it up?" Jack didn't bother looking behind her when she stepped out of the door and was followed promptly by Kevin.

He oozed out of the door; she could feel his eyes on the small of her back, taking in the amount of her flesh that the outfit revealed with a greedy expression on his face; she was glad that she couldn't see. Kevin made her feel dirty, like her whole body was crawling with fleas. She turned around and stared at him when he didn't answer her.

There was an appreciative smile on his face as his eyes raked her up and down. God, what was it with men? Didn't they get that unless a woman wanted them that they would really rather not be gawked at like they were a piece of appetizing meat?

"We both know you dress that way for me. You put yourself on show just so I'll see you. You're just waiting to catch my attention." There was the glitter of cold steel in his left hand as she backed slowly off, unzipping her bag as she went. "You've got it, why don't you stop pretending that this isn't what you want? After that, we can get down to business!"

"Business?" Jack gave him a very cynical look. "I think not!"

"Doesn't always matter what you think, love." Kevin's answer was said so lightly.

"We both know that there is no way that I would ever dress like this for you. We both know that I will never let you touch me in anyway at all. Look not touch, remember? That's the rules for every guy out there that I don't give express permission, got it Kevin?" She reached in her bag, taking out her own shiv and letting the bag fall to the ground near her. "I'm more than sure there are plenty of other women in that club who wouldn't mind your advances. Why don't you find one of them to bug so I can go back in there and dance with Luke or Joe?"

Jack's eyes followed the shifting of his eyes carefully and she moved when he did, always keeping what she discerned as a safe distance between them, in case he decided to do anything really stupid. Kevin normally wasn't as aggressive or persistent as he was being at that moment. It had to have been the mix of alcohol and whatever else it was that he had consumed that had given him the sudden courage to talk to her the way that he was talking to her now.

"I'm quite happy with you babe, why would I need anyone else?" He skirted around her bag but she moved carefully away from him, always keeping the right distance between them, never letting him closer than she absolutely had to, and that was never under five feet.

"Because I can't be had; there are only two people in this world who could have me, one is dead and the other isn't interested. Do you understand me? Leave me alone Kevin because it's not going to get you anywhere chasing me!" Jack snapped as he again tried to close the distance between them. Why did Johnny insist on keeping this fool around? "Stop trying, you're not going to get anywhere, Kevin."

"This is about that Riddick guy isn't it? You're his bitch right? His fuck buddy? What would Bret have to say about that?" Kevin spoke slowly, knew the effect that his words would have on her. Jack bristled and a snarl escaped her lips. Kevin and Bret had never been what she would call close; he was always part of the crew that Johnny had surrounded himself with, so hearing him talk as if he knew how Bret would feel made her angrier then she probably should have felt.

"I'm no one's bitch or fuck buddy. Bret is dead and the dead can't come back to life, therefore he can't have an opinion, but let me clue you in a little bit on Bret, alright my friend?" Her lips curled in a sarcastic snarl and she looked as if she might fly at him for no reason. "One, he would want me to be happy, if that meant Riddick, then so be it, all he ever wanted was for me to be happy. Two, if he could have an opinion on all of this shit, he would be rolling over in his grave if I was ever fool enough to let you get anywhere with your advances." She said and Kevin lunged at her, his blade cutting through the air, missing her by mere inches as she jumped away from him. She had been smart to keep her distance she found herself realizing. "Be smart Kevin," Jack warned. "I will gut you if you push me, and you don't want to cross that line because there is no mercy beyond it."

"You won't get the chance to even try. If I can't have you, then he can't have you either. It's really that simple sweetheart." Kevin launched a blistering attack that she hadn't been expecting. She managed to keep a step ahead of him, ducking, weaving and twisting but barely. He was quick for a man high and drunk, and for a moment she couldn't help but let herself wonder what he had actually taken.

"Kevin, snap the fuck out of it!" Jack snapped as she ducked a wild slash and she kicked his legs out from underneath him, landing him on the ground a few feet away from her, slightly winded as the heaven's opened in an almighty torrent. "I don't want to hurt you, Kevin but you're not giving me a choice here." But even as she said the words she was forced to jump backward as he rolled over, his arm stretching out as he went for her ankle with the blade in his hand. "Fine." She whispered, letting the silver bladed shiv in her hand become visible to him as he stood up. "You've sealed your own fate Kevin, do you understand me? Whatever happens now is your own fault, you brought it on yourself."

"No babe, you sealed it, it never had to be this way." He stood up, cracking his neck, his red hair hanging lank and wet around his neck as he looked at her. She snarled, aware that the clothes she was wearing were sticking to her body, not leaving much to the imagination but it wouldn't matter for long, soon enough he was going to be on his way to the seat of the gods.

There was no fear in her eyes as they started to circle one another, her eyes grew totally cold and harsh, her lips curling back showing teeth like a wild animal, cornered prey fighting for her life or a predator waiting for the right minute to pounce, she could have been either. There was something unreal, something un-Jack like about the look on her face, like she had suddenly lost her heart or humanity. She looked dangerous, quietly aggressive.

This Jack was all animal. Her survival instinct turned up to full. Kevin had never seen her like it, with her face full of cold aggression and hatred or was it just a desire for blood, he wasn't sure but he was suddenly unsure of himself, she could feel his uncertainty coming at her in waves. It fed the feeling, it was like she couldn't control herself, she was turning and she couldn't stop it, part of her didn't want to stop it, part of her revelled in the change.

They circled each other, her stance and the way she kept her eyes on him could have proved without much difficulty who had the most experience and ability when it came to this sort of predatory dance. She licked her lips, tasting the rain that was falling from the sky and made her first attack, cutting him twice, both very shallow cuts to his upper body, the falling water making the blood flow quicker, making shallow wounds look much worse. She was in her element, she was fighting a fight that she had every confidence in and it didn't scare her. It seemed that each time she turned, the turning got easier, the loss of true emotion less alarming, more comfortable and each time it was harder and harder to turn away from it, to keep even a thread of her humanity with her while she fought.

She was messing with him, everything about her little attacks screamed it, but she couldn't make herself go in for the kill. A small thread of humanity was still a part of her and that thread still registered as Jack and that part recognized Kevin and who he had been to her before he had pulled that blade with the intent to use it. The minute he gave up or walked away she would back off. Jack still had enough control to be able to stop herself if she was given the chance, but that chance had to clearly be given to her, no half hearted effort would work.

She knew that she was being pushed and that Johnny wouldn't blame her if something happened to Kevin because of it, he knew the situation but it didn't mean she wanted something that she could have controlled to happen. Why did the guy have to be such a stupid fucking bastard all the time? Didn't a girl saying 'no' mean anything any more or was she just fucking property for one purpose and one purpose only? Whatever the reasoning was, it made her mad as hell and that only made that thread of humanity weaken slightly.

Kevin's own blade flashed out but she stepped out to the side and managed to get behind him for long enough to give him another shallow nick, slicing through his t-shirt. She was keeping herself in check, she wanted to give him every chance to back down, _'that or gut you'_ a voice in her head said and part of her laughed at it, while another acknowledged the truth in the comment. Was she waiting for him to get smart and come close to killing her?

Kevin spun on his heel faster then she had anticipated. That blade ran lightly over the skin of her stomach but she knew it would have bit hell of a lot deeper if she hadn't jumped back. Not that her speed and agility really did her that much good after that.

Before she realized what had happened, she had slipped, the bad grips in her boots had given out against the mud under foot and she was flat on her back, pain making her body tingle; she had however, managed by some strange stroke of luck to keep a hold of her shiv, but barely. She could feel the blade biting into the edge of her palm, her grip having changed as she fell but that wasn't her main problem. To be honest she had too many problems to think of at that moment.

Problem number one: She couldn't breathe, her wind had been knocked out of her in the fall but it wasn't a normal kind of 'couldn't breathe', it felt like she had been paralyzed or something, her limbs were all tingly and she couldn't move no matter how hard she tired to get herself up.

Problem number two: She had Kevin with an evil grin on his face and glint in his eyes, not to mention a blade in his hand walking over to where she lay unable to breathe and practically paralyzed. That look was pissing her off but there was nothing in hell she could do about it, and that made her stomach clench as she made a strangled noise at the back of her throat as she tired for air once more.

Problem number three: She had a light graze on her stomach from his knife, that looked hell of a lot worse then it actually was due to the rain and her own blade was cutting into her hand and she was unable to move it into a better position or stop it from digging into her hand further.

Problem number four: She was royally screwed and she wasn't regaining control over her body quick enough to do anything about it. Before she would have a chance to do anything about it, she would more than likely be dead or dying from a cut or slash of Kevin's blade.

"If you had just given me what I wanted." Kevin said as he readjusted his grip on his blade, his voice holding a strange sad sort of resignation that just bloody well confused her. He was standing over her, the look on his face triumphant contradicting his tone of voice completely. He made her sick! "We could have been so good together Jackie baby. It's just a shame you couldn't see it because now, it's just too late."

_"You're totally fucked! You know that, you're brain is warped or something. Fuck the hell off!"_ Jack's mind screamed but all she was able to do was look up at him, her eyes rapidly blinking as the rain fell, splattering her face and instead of being able to say what she was thinking all she could do was choke in a couple of short, ragged breaths. There was something a little more then ironic about the whole situation. If she could have she would have laughed at the irony of it all, because there was hell of a lot of irony there.

She was flat on her back in a back ally behind a club owned by people she would have thought of as family, having screwed up a fight she would have won hands down if she hadn't been trying to give him a chance to back the hell down. She was about to be gutted by a man whom she had known and who had had her back on numerous occasions in the past when she had been in trouble. It could even be argued that she had trusted the man that was about to kill her, even if it was only fractionally.

The whole thing was totally fucked!

_"What the fuck is he waiting for?"_ Jack couldn't help but wonder as she got a sudden burst of feeling all around her body, the tingling turning to something akin to pins and needles. Was he waiting for her to be back to normal before he killed her or what? The suspense was killing her enough without him looking at her and sounding like he might actually be regretting what he was about to do.

"Get the fuck away from her. She's mine. No one gets away with hurting or threatening what belongs to me!" It was a voice that she had wanted to hear but realistically hadn't hoped that she would ever hear again. At that moment, as Kevin dropped his weapon and stared at her out of wide frightened eyes, she didn't even care that what was said by that deep gravely and comforting voice made her out to be a piece of property. She didn't care if she was property at that moment, she was completely safe again and with that realization came a relief that she couldn't begin to describe.

If she hadn't been struggling for breath and trying to maneuver the blade in her own hand she would have cried in relief. Those purple-blue eyes were glowing at her from behind Kevin's fear and rain soaked body. "You got it all wrong Riddick man." Kevin tried to talk his way out of his situation. "I wasn't gonna kill her man." He tried as a black, handmade shiv appeared at the corner of the red haired man's jaw.

"I know what I saw and nobody messes with what is mine, got it?" And then in one fluid motion she watched the blade slip around Kevin's throat and the grip that Riddick had on him released as he moved out of the way of Kevin's body that fell backward, red blood spilling from his throat, the panicked expression that had been on his face changing to a vacant one.

Jack was vaguely aware of sobbing Riddick's name as he picked her up, pocketing her blade and picking up her bag and jacket before walking back into the club and up to the bar. Her hands were curled around fistfuls of his drenched wife beater and she turned her face into his shoulder against the sudden brightness of the lights.

Johnny came up to them immediately concern written all over his face. Who could blame him? She was still sobbing while trying to breathe; he had a blade clearly visible in his hand, they were both soaking wet and Riddick looked angrier then a monster from hell. The whole thing just did not look good; it was a good thing that her bag and jacket covered the shallow cut on her stomach and the small amount of blood that it was producing.

"Everything alright?" The club owner asked.

"You have a mess that needs to be cleaned up in the back ally. I'll explain what happened later, at the moment I think I have more important things to worry about then that. Look in on the kid. We'll be back sometime tomorrow. She might just need a little bit of recovery time after what just took place." Riddick said, and behind the bar Johnny frowned, not liking what he heard.

"I'll go clean up the mess." Joe said and took a quick look at Jack before he walked away, blending in with the crowd easily.

"If you need anything, you know where we are." Johnny said as Riddick turned to go.

"When you find out about the mess in the ally, you might not feel the same way." Riddick said and left the club quickly for him, and yet to the onlooker his stride would still have looked normal and relaxed.

By the time they had driven out to the airfield and Riddick had bundled her into The Gemini she was beginning to feel more like herself. That was when a case of the shakes set in. He guided her onto the ship and she sat down numbly in the galley, her head working over and over what had taken place, and she became stock still, like she wasn't even there but the tremors that ran through her body at timed intervals were unmistakable.

By the time Riddick got back to where she was sitting, a first aid kit in his hands she had dissolved almost completely into tears. The pain in her hand, back and the stinging cut on her stomach didn't register anymore; all that mattered was that she had been the cause of another person's death again, the fact that he had been trying to kill her and that she would have killed him herself if she had been able to, had escaped her mind for a moment as her mind jumped instantly to the consequences.

"I killed someone." Jack said as he wet a cloth with warm water and ran it across the shallow cut, which really was more of a scratch that had bled deceptively much. She flinched away from the warm wet cloth for the simple fact that it stung, but the back of the seat stopped her from moving completely away.

"No I did." He said pointedly. "Do you still have clothes that fit on board? You're soaked and if you don't get out of those clothes you could very easily get yourself very sick."

"Yeah, there should be some in the drawers." Jack nodded as he finished wiping the blood away with a soft dry towel that he must have brought with him with the rest of the first aid stuff without her even seeming to notice. She stood up abruptly and started pacing, ignoring her wet clothes. He pulled out a spray can of what was labeled, 'spray on adhesive' and then watched her for a few moments.

Jack wasn't crying any more, but her head was spinning. Kevin was dead. They had fought, and now he was dead. Riddick's words floated through her head, 'No, I did.' Maybe he had killed him but she had been the cause of it. The whole thing was her fault, if she hadn't provoked Kevin then Riddick would never have had to find her and save her ass again. She turned around and almost walked into Riddick. She looked up at him and the shaking started all over again, spreading a chill all through her body that wasn't caused by her rain soaked clothes.

"We have to get the physical shit done now Jack, after that you can go into shock if you have to, just hold off for a while longer." He gripped her by the shoulders, his fingers digging into the joints slightly till she looked up at him and she swallowed hard, but nodded and he was forced to watch the look in her eyes change from haunted to hard and her whole demeanor changed with it. It was almost as if she had an on/off switch for the aggressive side of her.

"Lets make this quick then. I'm close to the edge of loosing it." She sat down and he finished patching her up, starting with her stomach and finishing with her hand. Jack didn't understand how he was so calm, after each of her very few kills she had always become a shaking, rickety mess, only until now, no one had ever seen it happen.

"Don't loose it yet." Was all Riddick had said to her and that had been half way through cleaning her hand and the shakes had threatened to set in all over again. Once he was done, he looked at her for a minute  
and then stood up. "Bathroom." He ordered. "We need to get you cleaned up. You're still covered in mud."

"I'll be out in a couple of minutes then." Jack answered with a pained expression on her face as she rotated the wrist he had just wrapped but he shook his head.

"Can't get your hand wet." He answered her and followed her to the bathroom door. She turned around with her hands on her hips when they reached it and shook her head again.

"Well, I dunno about you and what is crossing the line for you, but this is crossing the line for me. We've already had the whole relationship slash romance talk; it makes this whole thing a step over the line for me. I don't need your help and I don't want things to get more complicated then they already are for me, therefore I will be going in there alone." She shook her head stubbornly. "Got it?"

"How are you going to wash your hair? You only have one hand to use." He gave her an even look and she couldn't stand the lack of emotion on his face. It was as if the whole thing didn't bother him at all.

"My hair really doesn't need me to wash it, the rain did a good enough job of that, all I'll have to do is wrap it in a towel." She answered. "Anyway, I have one good hand and it's not that hard to hold your head under a shower head."

"Jack I'm not going to try anything."

"I know you won't. That's the whole point." She snarled and pushed her own weak side away. Her other side had taken over again and was keeping her sane for the moment, it had asserted itself first when she had been forced to fight with Kevin and then again when Riddick had forced her to push the shock away. The other side of her was still angry and her emotional turmoil over Riddick wasn't helping her with the guilt and the shock of being the cause of Kevin's death, even if he had deserved it.

"So you want me to start something?" He asked evenly, no emotion in his voice at all, and it only helped make her angrier.

"Nothing you can't finish." She challenged and he said nothing, just looked at her. She clenched her jaw and sighed. "I thought so," She said when he didn't say anything at all. "I'll be out in a while." Was all she said before closing the door a little harder then she had meant to, she reappeared a little over ten minutes later, wrapped in his old bathrobe, her hair damp but it had obviously been attacked with a dry towel, her skin was still a flushed pink color, an after effect of steam from the shower. She stood in the middle of the galley and looked at him.

"You want me to do your hair?" He asked. She bit her lip and shook her head; it wasn't hard to see the strength holding everything together start to falter. The fact that Kevin was dead because of her bothered her, but not as much as the reactions of what was left of her friends and surrogate family would be. That was what was playing on her mind more then anything else. She wondered how long she would be welcome to be their friend or family member, more then likely not for that much longer, at least not when the truth came out.

"Give me ten minutes to throw some clothes on, and we can go pick up Candace and the rest of our things. I'll come back for _The Chancer_ in a few months, but we can't stay here now." She said in reply to his question. There was fear in the back of her eyes.

"Running away?"

"Leaving before I bring any more trouble to these people." She shook her head, it was different, running away and leaving for their own good. She took a step toward the master bedroom but the minute she moved, the started trembling again. He closed the distance between them, enveloping her in a warm embrace that started to take the chill that had settled in her bones off. Even the shower, as hot as she had made it hadn't been able to deal with that chill.

"Don't worry about it." He said, one of his arms holding her close to his chest, the other hand running his fingers through her hair in a manor she found almost as comforting as the distinct smell that was all Riddick. Ever since she had been a teenager and been comforted by him after nightmares that smell had signified so much for her.

"Then just hold me." She said into his chest, her words coming out slightly muffled.

There was no risk of tears, she knew that she was past that, but a deadly cold had set in and she couldn't seem to shake it. She was very close to her breaking point and she didn't want to see what was on the other side of the wall. If she had been alone she would have filled a hot water bottle and be curled up on the couch back at her home watching a cheesy movie that kept her mind from thinking, maybe opened a pint of ice cream… But she wasn't alone and she didn't know how to deal with these emotions when she wasn't alone.

"I'm here." He let her sag against him, knowing that she only did it because she was in desperate need of comfort and trusted him to deliver the kind of comfort that she needed. She trusted him with a lot, her physical and mental safety, she had trusted him with her emotions and now she trusted him with her decisions.

He let them stand there in the galley for a while, never taking his arm from around her body, his other hand gently massaging her neck, releasing the tension that had been building up. Every once and a while he would feel a tremor run through her body and his other hand would lazily stroke her back to make her feel a little better. She had always been one to take comfort from physical contact and proximity. That was how he had managed to keep most of her nightmares away for all those years. He had never been out of arms length at night.

Jack just stood there and let her forehead rest against his collarbone. He was safety to her, he felt and smelled and radiated safety. Leaning there, against him made her feel like everything was going to be okay no matter how screwed up things might have been seeming at that moment. Before him it had been her parents that had made her feel safe, after him Bret and then she learned to make herself strong and now he was there again, like he had never left in the first place and she was happy to let him continue to make her feel safe.

She pulled away just enough after a chill set up and down her spine and looked at him. His lips gently brushed her forehead and she sighed deeply. She was in pain, she was causing pain and yet he was being so tender, like she actually deserved to be treated tenderly. She wanted him to be mad at her, to yell at her or something, she had made him kill again, she had made him kill for her.

"Why didn't you just leave me to…" She asked, not trying to escape the comfort of his arms but found herself unable to finish the question and was not getting her hopes up about the answer. Riddick was known to do some things on a whim, what if that had just been another one of those?

"I need you alive Jack." Was all he said.

"Why did you say that I was yours?" To her own ears, her own voice sounded a little too hopeful for her liking. She did not want to get the wrong answer, but she wasn't expecting the right. She was pushing things, she knew it, she knew she should be letting things run their course but she couldn't help herself.

"Because you are." Another annoyingly simple answer.

"Not that easy." Jack shook her head, but rested it against him again. He chuckled, it sent vibrations all over her body, it made a smile creep across her face but it never quite reached her eyes. Her green eyes would have looked tired, sad and cold. But like the smile on her face, her eyes were hidden from his sight.

"Really?" The amusement traveled to his voice.

"Please don't. You know it's not that simple or easy. You don't have the claim over me that you think you do, and I am too emotionally drained right now to deal with this too if it's going to end like last time. There isn't a right time for this or us remember?" The arm around her tightened at her words.

"You brought it up."

"Don't remind me." She answered dryly.

"Do you realize that you scared me tonight, Jack? Twice?" Jack stiffened when she heard those words. Riddick frightened sounded strange to her, let alone her being the cause of it. "You've only ever caused me to be afraid two other times since I've known you which means you doubled up tonight."

"Wanna explain a little more?" She stepped back so that she could look at him properly.

"When you got that infection and nearly died on me when you were still a teenager and, when you all of a sudden weren't there on Demedia."

"I mean tonight."

"Walking into that club tonight, seeing you dressed like you were, dancing like that and in Luke's arms like he owned you or something. You looked happy and you didn't know I was there; you didn't need me to be there. I worked so hard not to want you, that it only made it worse." There was honesty in his face and a gentile smile appeared on her face that was meant to be reassuring.

"Jealous?" She wrinkled her nose slightly.

"Totally." He answered and she couldn't stop the laughter, him being jealous was an alien concept to her, almost as strange as him being afraid in the first place.

"He's so gay! Come on, you know me, I've never been much of one to lap up attention from guys."

"Five guys in two years."

"God, I knew that one was going to jump up and bite me in the ass one day. It was really only one guy and four skilled workers whom I fooled into teaching me. Nothing much really happened with those four, as if it was any of your business." She stated evenly. "Only two men have ever captured my heart and imagination. One died for me and the other keeps saving my life, like it's a life worth saving." It was his turn to chuckle lightly. "When was the second time?"

"Right after Joe got me and told me that there could be trouble brewing between you and Kevin, when I saw you outside, laying at Kevin's feet, choking in air. I wasn't actually sure if you were dieing on me right then or not."

"Takes more then a little cut to kill me. I've had much worse."

"That bothers me too."

"Don't let it. It happened a long time ago." She shook her head. "But what now?"

"Now, we get you all tucked up in bed and you sleep this shit off. In the morning, I'm sure we'll get a visit from your friends after we get home. After that, we'll see what happens and where this shit takes us alright?"

"That's not what I meant."

"I know it's not what you meant but that is your answer for now." She nodded her understanding and he gave her a nudge in the direction of the master bedroom that they had shared on their travels before his disappearance in her life. "I won't be far away if you need me."

"No." She shook her head. "Don't leave me alone right now. Please?"

"Alright," He nodded. "Go change and crawl in, I'll be right though."

---

Pendragon4 – Hey, hadn't heard from you in a while, wondered where you had gone…lol. Hope that my explanations helped a little bit, if you need any more help…just say and I will do my best.

Pumpkinhead0402 – Glad you like Candace…she's a peach and will be having quite the roll to play sooner then you may think.

A – All will happen in good time.

Riddick's Sita – Wow…three reviews. I'm glad that you like the story and hope you had a good time with your friends. Riddick is quite the character and I'm glad that you think I've made him realistic, I have done my best.

POO Piles of it – Ahh yes, the drinking culture in the UK. Am well aware of his, have been living in the UK for 9 years now….lol. I'm so glad that you like the story and yes, I love my cliffhangers…they are so much fun even if they are evil.

Cateyes120 – Thanks so much for your help. You've been great with this chapter; this was a chapter that created a headache…if it wasn't for you it might not have turned out as well. Thanks.

FaTaL DiStRaCtIoN – I hope that because of this update I won't be hunted down and hurt…lol. Thanks so much for your review. I'm glad you have that much of a liking for my story, I just can't wait to see what you have happen to Riddick and Jack in your own story. Anyone looking for a good Jack story, check out 'Saving The Forgotten'. It's fab!

nikki-da-latina – More JR alone time is on it's way and also an appearance of a friend that has been mentioned but not as of yet seen…just to help Jack get her head around things….thanks for the review.

Thanks all for reading…please do review and tell me your thoughts.

K.


	24. A Teacher’s Lesson

Hey all, this is a quick update to say that I haven't forgotten about this story and that it is still in the works even though I haven't the time I thought that I would have to write it. But that doesn't meant that I haven't been jotting down a sentence here and a sentence there.

Feedback as always is very welcome.

Kayla

Chapter 24: A Teacher's Lesson.

Joe looked over at his quiet and grey-faced companion. It was neither a happy nor a worried look that graced Jonathan Marks' face as he got back in the car from paying his last respects to a friend that had died trying to hurt another friend. The middle-aged man looked old as he buckled up his seatbelt and Joe could understand how he was feeling.

They had moved Kevin's body and buried it in a secluded plot of land in the middle of nowhere, in an unmarked grave that they would probably forget the exact location of with the passing of time. It was not a way that a friend should be buried and yet at the same time Joe wondered if they could actually call the man a friend anymore.

Riddick had carried an extremely pale and cowering Jack out of _Zion_. That was a fact that did not escape the man whose senses were only made more alert by the drug that he made, distributed and was high on himself most if not all of the time.

What had Kevin done to her before Riddick had disappeared outside, following the girl that he had been like a shadow to for as long as he had been visible to the stung out man?

Shit is hitting the fan!

The realisation had dawned on him then as Riddick had walked past him and was only continuing to be reinforced in his head the longer it took them to find Jack, for all they knew, Jack could have been dying herself when Riddick carried her out of there, she hadn't said anything and she was already greying in the way that people who had either lost a lot of blood or had been out for the count greyed.

"We have to find her Joe." Johnny said, his voice, as soft as it was, was loud in the silence that had been laying oppressively around them since they had cleaned up the ally and carted the body away. It was as if their makeshift leader actually could read his friend's mind.

"I know Johnny but I don't know where to look anymore. We've tried the apartment, we've tried my apartment block, we've called the airfield and Cody assured us that neither _The Chancer_ or _The Gemini_ has departed and yet both her and Riddick are still missing." He said as he started the pick-up truck's old engine and pulled away from the spot that they had buried their friend.

"Kelly is beginning to think the worst." He said shaking his head and then letting it fall into the hands that were resting on his lap. The emotional strain of the last few hours were taking their toll in a way that Joe had been expecting and yet at the same time he hadn't thought that Johnny would crumble as quickly as he was crumbling at that moment.

"And what's the worst J?" Joe looked at him as he reversed out of the gates and spun his beat up truck away from Kevin's last resting place.

"Dead or they've ran and taken a chartered ship out of here." Johnny said from where his head was resting in his hands on his lap, making his words come out slightly muffled and more then a little strained.

"I don't think she's dead Johnny, we'd know about it if she was dead, Riddick isn't so heartless that he would make her family worry and suffer wondering if she was dead or alive and for her really to have passed away. That and I think he'd come back for the kid if Jack was dead." Joe said. "And I know that if Jack feels as responsible for this kid as I know she does that they wouldn't leave her behind if they were skipping planets."

"Jack will follow Riddick probably to the grave Joe, and I can assure you that Riddick will be taking hold of the reins as far as decision making from this point until Kevin's death is dealt with." Johnny shook his head and looked at his most trusted friend with a look that almost pleaded for relief of some sort.

"And how do you know that?"

"Because Riddick and I have a few things in common and one of those things is the need to keep those we love close and safe. I have a feeling about this that I doubt will be wrong. Things are not going to turn out well if he decides that running is the best option."

"And how do you know that?"

"Because I know Jack well enough that I know that running will not sit well on her, not when she has other responsibilities in her life that she'll be running from too."

"Or she'll need to run."

"That's not like Jack Joe." Johnny shook his head.

"More like her then I think most of us like to think. Remember, she ran away from foster services, ran away with Riddick as a kid, hopped planets living the life of a runaway through her teen years, ran again when she though that Riddick died, hid her real identity and went underground every time some Merc came looking for her ass. If she's not a classic runner then I don't know my own kind. She's trying to escape what she is and the only way she knows how to do that is to run." Joe analysed as he took a turn that would lead them onto the main road that would lead them into the centre of the city.

"And what makes you think that you know her better then Kelly or I?" Johnny had a slightly hostile tone to his voice that his old friend just shrugged off, uninterested in his behaviour, he was tried and under a lot more pressure then he really needed to be but that was Johnny, always shouldering burdens that he didn't have to and Joe understood that.

"She hangs about a lot. Doesn't say a lot but gives enough to give me food for thought and I have a lot of time for thought J." Joe said not even blinking as a peacekeeper's red car drove past, causing Johnny next to him to shudder. The peacekeepers were the law in their parts and Joe had had more run ins and near misses with them then he cared to count out loud.

So far he had been lucky.

"I'm worried Joe."

"We all are J." Joe said and carefully manoeuvred the truck back into the city limits.

She could be really quiet if she wanted to be, deadly quiet, but she didn't know how she managed to slip out of bed, grab a change of clothes and leave _The Gemini_ without waking the super-sensitive Riddick but either he was getting less aware in his old age or he was getting too comfortable with her and she knew that probably wasn't a good thing for him. He could barely afford to trust her the way that their lives were working out; she was still the main target for any Merc coming after him.

She knew the airstrip like the back of her own hand and it helped that her old teacher from the academy owned and ran it. It made her assess to certain places easier and her approval to take off and land as she pleased that much easier too. Bill Cody was an old man who was as tough as old boot nails and took no shit from anyone much less his students, old or new. It was probably the reason that she learned so well from him, after the way she had been taught by Riddick anything less then tough as nails would have been useless to her.

She shifted her bag over her shoulder and looked around, a nervous habit that she had only reinforced in the last few weeks. The sun was just being to rise in the sky, the clouds that dotted the area reflecting it in oranges and pinks but as of yet what there was of sunlight wasn't really enough to lighten the area by that much. It wasn't cold but she found herself shivering anyway as she wrapped her arms around herself and hurried along to the tower, hoping that Bill had gotten over whatever bug he had had.

"Sarg.?" She tapped on the buzzer at the bottom of the tower that was situated right by the door with a security camera pointed right toward it so that the paranoid bugger could see who was trying to get into his tower.

"David said that you were back." Her old teacher's voice crackled out of the loudspeaker and she smiled for a moment. "Number's 547369, let yourself in."

Jack didn't bother responding instead she punched in the code, careful to make sure the door closed and the lock click before she made her way up the winding staircase to the glass doomed room at the top of the tower. Where she was sure the old man was already in the process of changing his security code.

"Pour yourself a coffee." Was how she was greeted but she had been expecting nothing more. Bill was not a man to stand on formality and he was not the type of man that did small talk well. He had boldly proclaimed after their first meeting that that was all the small talk that they needed during the remainder of their relationship, if neither of them had anything meaningful to say then they could both live in silence, he did not need to hear about weather that he was well aware of. She smiled, she knew about the double meaning to his greeting too. When he said, 'pour yourself a coffee' he really meant for you not only to pour yourself one but him one also.

"Thought you never got sick Sarg. That's what you told me at the academy if I remember correctly when you dragged my ass out of bed after I had spent the night being sick." She said as she poured the coffee and creamer into two mugs, adding one sugar to his and then it was passed to him.

"I'm getting on a bit Jackie." He answered.

"Bullshit, you'll never get old, you've already spat in old age's face twenty years ago." She sat down next to him and sipped at her coffee, only to make a face that brought a momentary smile to the old man's face. "It's tar Sarg. not coffee!"

"Good isn't it?" The man who though he was in his early sixties didn't look a day over a slightly grey forty-five shook his head smiling. Bill had always made coffee so strong that it tasted thick and he made it clear that he would A. be offended if you didn't have a cup and B. be offended if you didn't finish your cup.

"Whatever you say." She rolled her eyes and closed her eyes for a moment as she sipped again, secretly she really did like it in some strange sort of once and a while kind of way.

"Your family gave me a small call last night around four in the morning Jack. They were trying to find out if you had jumped planets. They're really worried about you or at least it sounded that way." He said after a few minutes of silence, a silence that she knew he was enduring until she was ready to talk to him seriously.

"Really? Say anything else interesting?" To her own ears, her voice sounded dull and uninterested.

"Want to explain to me why I should be getting calls like that, that early in the morning?" He pushed.

"Kevin's dead. He tried to kill me so a friend of mine, a very possessive and protective friend of mine, killed him just before he actually slit my throat." She answered with a sigh and shook her head as she looked out over control panels to look at the steadily rising sun.

"A lover Jackie? Not Adrian?"

"Adrian was never a lover, just an engineer." Jack looked at him slightly disgusted that he would even think that she was stupid enough to make a lover out of Adrian, as nice a man as he was and as attractive a man as most women would tell her and each other. "And no, he's not a lover," She said in a frustrated snarl, "he's a… well I don't know what the fuck he is, not anymore, there was a time when I possibly did but not now."

"Ahh, I think I see the problem." He smiled knowingly and she gave him a disgruntled look.

"What? Sexual frustration? I could have told you that." She quipped.

"Don't get crude Jack, you're not as vile a person as you would like people to think you are." He chided and she actually found herself feeling ashamed of herself.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"You were always a good student, good marks in school, generally an upright citizen?" Bill sat back in his seat, a self-satisfied smirk on his face that used to piss her off when she was studying under him in the Academy.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Jack took a deep gulp of her coffee, not seeing the relevance of the turn of the conversation.

"I'll explain later now answer the questions."

"Yes, I was always good in school, got good grades etc. Never was a very good citizen though, remember who I'm friends with, come on, a known criminal half raised me and I was constantly helping him hide, personally I'd call that aiding and abetting. Come on Sarg. you know all this; you saw my grades when I got to the Academy. I could even already pilot when I was placed in your very competent hands."

"That's cocky bullshit Jacquelyn and you know it! Being able to fly a ship isn't the same as being able to pilot it. When you first came to the Academy you were as cocky as shit with a little talent and a lot of very bad habits." He said strongly and she rolled her eyes at him.

"Too true but I was brilliant after all was said and done." Jack knew that all her words were going to do was piss him off but she didn't care, she liked playing with him sometimes. He made it too easy to piss him off sometimes and as long as you were careful it could be a fun game to play.

"Indeed." He said dryly and let them slip back into silence for a while.

"So what did all that have to do with my fucking problem and you knowing what it is even though I fucking don't." She looked at him expectantly.

"You've got a foul mouth Jacquelyn." Was all he said in reply and no other words left his mouth.

"Always have had, no difference there." She answered.

"You could always change that for the better." He said and was silent again, not even attempting to answer her former question.

"And…" She pushed.

"This is the first time that you've been faced with something that you want and this time you can't have it. It's never happened to you before so you don't know how to handle it." Bill said, "That's why you're here instead of where ever this love interest of yours is."

"Bullshit." She answered.

"Is it?" He challenged. "Don't make me teach you another lesson Jack, you're hard to try and teach a lesson."

"I do know how to handle this shit. I stay the hell away from him, pack up the teenager that he landed me with a few weeks ago and ship off planet, that will sort a lot of problems I think." She said hotly but there was a grimace on her face too.

"A teenager?"

"Sixteen years old." She nodded sadly. "I've got to find her father for her."

"You're not the type to pack up and skip off planet lass." Bill shook his head.

"I know I'm not but it would be the easy option." She sat back in her seat, her shoulders slumped forward and a deep frown on her face. "We spoke about it last night when I was in a blind panic he stopped me from going and getting Candace right then to disappear like so many others do. He doesn't think we should leave at all but I don't think I can stay and face the people that used to be my family."

"I didn't teach you to take the easy option when things get tough because running away is not the easy option."

"I was a star, stop acting like I wasn't."

"I did not choose you because you were going to be the easiest option, I would have chosen Joshua Sparks if I wanted an easy ride, I can assure you that you were one of the hardest people that I have ever had the displeasure of trying to teach. To be honest, I should have picked someone easier to handle but you were a challenge even if you were a total bitch at times."

"Thanks." She said dryly.

"An easy ride isn't like either of us Jack."

"I can't have been that bloody hard to teach Sarg., I was a very quick learner unlike some of them." Jack defended herself.

"You were very hard to teach Jack, I had to teach you. Between keeping your identity and connections with certain criminals secret and trying to correct the flaws in what you had been taught by your previous teacher you were a royal pain in my backside. You had to have been my hardest ever project and I only took you on because you weren't the quitter then that you seem to be turning into now."

Jack sighed and looked at the floor, she wasn't a quitter and the accusation stung. There was nothing that she could do, the circumstances that she had been thrown into were making hell break loose and she was more out of control then ever. She had only two choices, go with the flow, letting Riddick take charge of everything and stop worrying about being in control, or take control of her own life and get out while she still could.

She shook her head.

The easy option.

She took her hair out of it's binding and ran her non-damaged hand through it. Her fingers picked out the knots and she closed her eyes trying to work out what she was being expected to do now. But the more she thought the more she realized that her whole body ached in ways that she hadn't been feeling before.

"How bad was the fight then?" Jack held up her bandaged hand and raised her eyebrows at him. "That the only damage that was done to you?"

"A cut on my stomach, my fucked up hand, I've got a nice bruised back, my ankle hurts and my brain is tired of running everything over and over again picture perfect and not being able to change shit of what went on. Don't you get it Bill?" She said and tears welled up in her eyes. "My family aren't exactly going to get over that very quickly are they?"

"Cut the self pity!"

"I'm not…" She wasn't given a chance to finish.

"You said that he was trying to kill you, it's his own fault, therefore that someone who is protective of you got to him first. If I had been there, or Johnny, or Joe instead of this mysterious friend of yours then Kevin would be more then likely still be dead right now and you I'm sure would not be feeling as insecure about this as you are now." The older man was sure of himself as he spoke, sure in a way that Jack could not be. Would Joe or Johnny really have killed Kevin if they had been stood there in Riddick's shoes at the moment that he had found her?

Something in her made her doubt it greatly!

"You might have but Johnny and Joe wouldn't have. He was their friend Bill, it would have been too much of a choice to make, they would probably just have tackled him and pulled me out of the way." She shook her head. "No, this is just the kind of thing that people expect from my friend and his kind."

"And what kind is that Jacquelyn?" He looked at her.

"Sarg…" She looked pained and nervous all of a sudden.

"You don't have to tell me Jack but I would hope that you have seen how faithful I am to my friends, students and their secrets. As long as this secret is not one that is physically or mentally harming you then I will keep it to the grave." He said sincerely and she smiled, that was the other side of her teacher that she trusted beyond everything else, when he said something he meant it.

"The murdering kind, the convicted criminal kind, the escaped convict type." She said her good hand playing with the bandage on her bad hand, her eyes avoiding looking at him in anyway.

"The Riddick kind?" He said and she slowly nodded.

"You're in love with him Jack?"

"No, not in love with him," she shook her head, unsure of how to explain the magnetic attraction that had been pulling her toward him since the torch that she had momentarily blinded him with had proved to her that he was actually the man that she had been spending time missing. "But I want him. I like him a lot, I care about him like I have cared about very few men in my life."

"And he does not feel the same for you?"

"No, it's not that. It's just that in his life there is no time for the romance and relationship that I want and he will not let me become a 'causal fuck' as he called it." She said and a sad sigh escaped her lips.

"At least he cares."

"Sometimes I wish he wouldn't. If I didn't know that he cared for me then it would be easy to let things slide into the way that they used to be." Jack was sick of analyzing everything that had happened and her relationship with the man whose life was so interwoven with hers.

"Perhaps that is for the best." The old drill sergeant nodded his understanding.

"Perhaps." She gave him a faint smile, which he returned with one of his own. "Another coffee Sarg?"

"I can deal with that." He nodded and handed her his empty mug.


	25. Said And Done

Welcome to another installment of Defining Moments. I know that since I moved down south that I haven't been very good at updating and for that I apologize. As it turns out, I don't have as much time on my hands as I thought I would but never fear, this story is by no way put by the way side. I have been working hard on this particular installment for some weeks now and I hope that you all enjoy.

As for the next installment, it should be out sometime within the next two or three weeks but please bare with me, my internet access isn't what it once used to be.

Kayla

Sara – Don't worry the story is not abandoned, it is only about half way through. I just don't have the time to work on it that I used to have.

Cutilichick4ever – I'm glad you like my story, I hope you keep reading.

NightmareWeaver – I'm still plugging on.

K-Marie-M – Candy's Daddy will happen when you least expect it to. As for Jack's family I'm afraid that that will be chapter 26.

Destiny – We are only half way through the story, there are thing yet to come that might throw our dear Jack way over her head and the question then will be how she chooses to try and survive them. I'm just very glad that you like the story and I'm sure there are still a few more surprises up my sleeve before it comes to it's own end.

a – I know I haven't updated for a long time but I think that this is a chapter that you have been waiting for and clamoring for, for quite a while.

Lady Crucio – I'm sorry it wasn't quiet as quick-smart as you would have liked.

Pendragon4 – Hey there, hope you haven't given up on this fic yet. I'm glad you're still around and enjoying it.

POO Piles of it – That was a whole lot of FANSTASTICs. I'm glad you like it so much and I'm now in the lake district…I think that it's beautiful here, a little secluded perhaps but still lovely. Not scabby at all.

* * *

Chapter 25: Said And Done

She typed in the code to let her back into her ship, knowing that Riddick would most likely be awake and aware now. Awake, aware and angry. The tightening in her own gut made her realize that she was probably more then a little fearful of what his reaction was going to be to her arrival back at the ship. She hadn't thought about that when she had made the decision to leave. Although, she realized that she would probably have left anyway, she had needed to talk to her old teacher.

Jack took a deep breath as the door slid open and she walked up the ramp into the ship. The lights were on low, maybe twenty or thirty percent, enough for her to see around her clearly but not bright enough for the light to aggravate Riddick's very light sensitive eyes. Riddick's back was to her as she walked up into the cockpit and he didn't show any sign that he was going to acknowledge her presence.

"Morning." She said when he didn't even stir as she walked up behind him.

"Where did you disappear to?" He asked instead of greeting her in return. Was this the way that teenager's caught coming home after having been out when they weren't supposed to be felt when confronted?

"Just went for a walk and to see Sarg." She answered truthfully with a slight shrug. "You must have slept well, you didn't even hear me go."

"Don't get used to it." He said turning around but the frown on his face was normal, the one he tended to wear almost every day, not one that said he was particularly angry or annoyed with her. "You should go take a shower, clean up a bit. We have to go deal with the clean up at some point today and I'd rather not have a bunch of angry people jumping down my throat because you look worse then you are."

"Thanks for caring so much." She snapped sarcastically. What the fuck was that supposed to mean?

"That's not what I meant Jack, so stop now." He answered, his eyebrows knitting together. "How about I make a pot of coffee while you go take a shower. You'll feel better for it and it might not be the best afternoon. I'd rather have you feeling better about yourself before you have to face that." His whole manor and tone had changed completely and were somehow, in his own way, softer.

"Hazelnut coffee?" Jack asked.

"If you want." He nodded and received a smile as she put her bag down out of the way and walked away from him, through the bedroom door that closed behind her.

It didn't take her long to move to the bathroom that adjoined the room. She shed her clothes and took a look at the damage: she had a nice plate sized bruise on the middle of her back and the shoulder she had hurt while aboard _The Aurora_ felt stiff as she rotated it. The cut on her abdomen would heal quickly without leaving a mark. She was able to assess but she couldn't say the same for the deeper cut on her hand that was still wrapped up in a bandage.

Kevin had given her a couple of nice reminders of his passing. Jack grimaced and set the shower to sonic rather then water, that way her hair would at least be cleaned without needing anyone's help. The smell of fresh hazelnut and coffee drifted through the air as she stepped into the shower.

She took a deep breath as the ten-minute cycle kicked in and she let her mind wonder over everything that had taken place the night before, including in her thoughts the things that she had talked about with Bill but she got no peace from it. As much as she tried to concentrate on the details of Kevin's demise, her mind just kept asking her the same questions over and over again.

What would Kelly and Jonathan have to say about the fact that one of their friends had died because of her? And would that be the end of her friendship and relationship with them? Had this whole thing meant that finally she had over stayed her welcome? Was she now causing these people more harm then good?

Yet as much of her regretted the fact that Kevin was dead just as much of her didn't regret it. He had tried to kill her and Riddick had saved her. He had saved her again, just how many times had he saved her now and it only served to make her feel more attached to him. Hero worship some would call it but he knew different, hero worship had died out a long time ago for her.

He was the known universe's most wanted killer, living with him, she already knew, wasn't exactly a bed of roses but it wasn't like she couldn't handle it, she could and she would willingly. And yet following him would mean she would more then likely have to leave the life she had built for herself to keep them safe but she would have him in her life again and somehow that made her feel better about the whole thing. It seemed that life had her pegged to be a nomad.

She breathed in deeply and closed her eyes. There had only been one short spell in the last two years where she hadn't wanted Riddick to appear again and wouldn't have dropped nearly everything for the life she had led with him. A short eight-month period where she had learned what it felt like to be loved but even then she had wished that Riddick had loved her that way.

He said he cared about her, not loved her and she knew it. Cared about her in a way that made her more then just a friend to him, made her attractive to him and he cared enough not to make her a casual fuck.

Who was to say, however, that the love she had for him was the screaming-from-the-roof-tops-can't-get-better-then-this kind of love anyway?

Love was a fickle thing, that she knew well enough. Her parents hadn't even loved each other; it had just been a high society match that turned out alright because they had been friends since they were young children. Bret had loved her, had been crazy enough about her to ask her to marry him, but for her it never got past physical attraction and emotional attachment coupled with friendship that had held everything together.

Because of the way that Riddick and her were, she wondered if either of them were really capable of loving another person like that anyway. Yes they could care, but the killing had made her feel more and more guarded about letting people get close enough to her to let herself start really loving them. Life was just too finite. But then, Riddick had got close to her before she had killed, had made her feel safe before she had learned how to terminate life herself, how easy it could be to just end everything. By that time he was an old professional at the game.

Had he ever let her get as close to him as she had let him get to her?

"Jack?" Riddick knocked on the door a little while later as the cycle was coming to an end. "Coffee and breakfast are ready."

"Be out in a minute." She called back as she slipped on a robe and walked out of the door that led into the bedroom. There was a smile on her face as she found cargos and a tank top to wear. One thing that Riddick had never made her before was breakfast; he had always insisted on no set meal times and that if she wanted to eat she could have what she wanted as long as she made it for herself. Often enough however, if he had been around in the mornings and evenings and hadn't fed himself, she would make enough food to feed them both and just leave his portion in the pan. When it came to clean up it was usually gone.

Maybe he was trying to be nice about everything. Though she had thought that instead of making her breakfast he would be preparing the biggest telling off that she had ever received in her life. But the offer of coffee and then breakfast made it seem more and more possible that the issue had ended the night before, when they got back to the ship.

Jack had just pulled on her cargos and was in the process of pulling the nondescript tank top over her head when Riddick knocked on the closed door.

"Breakfast's getting cold." He said as he opened the door. He looked her up and down, a look that she couldn't decipher on his face.

"I remember using that line a time or two in the past." Jack smirked and walked past him into the main part of the ship, which also served as a galley choosing to ignore the look rather the puzzle over it.

The table had been set nicely; each plate was piled high with scrambled eyes, bacon, biscuits and sausage. There was a cup of juice, from the look of it, it was probably peach juice but sometimes that food synthesizer got the color wrong so it could really be anything (she really had to make a note to upgrade the thing sooner rather then later) and a mug of steaming hazelnut coffee next to each place. Jack turned around and gave him a thankful smile.

"Looks good enough to eat." She commented.

"Should taste pretty good too unless your new food cards aren't any good." He answered as they both sat down.

"Knew you couldn't have made all this from scratch in the time you had." She picked up the pepper and gave her eggs a friendly helping.

"Just eat." He said dryly and she laughed as she cut a sausage in half and speared it onto a fork that made it's way quickly into her mouth. After that they ate in relative silence, Riddick eating more then she thought was humanly possible but that was fairly normal, he had always eaten like a horse.

"There are a few things that we have to talk about, about what happened last night and this morning." Riddick's voice pulled her out of her own thoughts after they had finished their meal and sat there for a few minutes neither saying anything. Her head snapped up from where she was drawing nonsense patterns on the table top with her finger, a habit she had picked up in school when she was eleven or twelve that helped her think clearly, her eyes slightly wide as her mind started to whorl with excuses and defenses.

"What about last night?" She asked guardedly as she refilled her mug with coffee.

"Don't look so spooked Jack." He snapped.

"I'm not spooked." She snapped back but he ignored her.

"What were you thinking last night?" He asked.

"About what?" She frowned at him, her eyebrows knitting together.

"Leaving Candace to tell me where you'd gone? Dressing like you had to go to a place where anyone could have gotten their hands on you? You wanna know how fucking stupid that was?" The tone of his voice told her that the telling off had started and there she had been thinking she wasn't going to have to deal with a telling off either.

"I'm an adult Riddick, if I want to go out to a club then I'll go out to a club. It wasn't like it was just any club, I know every escape route in that place and trust me there are a few that only the family know about, that's what happens when you have someone who's on a wanted list in your family." She shook her head. "And what the hell was wrong with the way I was dressed? _Please_ tell me that _you_ didn't take offense to that, most people don't!"

"Most people or most men." He snapped.

"Fuck you!" She glared at him.

"Why exactly do you think you got so much attention in there Jack?" There was a look on his face that she did not appreciate.

"Girls like to get noticed Riddick or hadn't you realized that? I like to know that I've been noticed. You sure as hell weren't noticing me, I needed someone to!" She couldn't stop herself snapping at him. She hating being dictated to and she did not like the suggestion that was behind his words.

"Well done Jack, you certainly got _people_ to notice you."

"Why don't you just come out and call me a fucking whore then?" Jack slammed her coffee cup down on the table. This was a conversation that she had never expected to have with Riddick. She gritted her teeth. What right did he have to start criticizing the way she dressed and what she did to relax when she had put up with his relaxing habits for years? She hadn't ever said anything when he'd come home late at night after a shitty day, smelling of cheep skank and sex, all she ever did was knock a few back and dance, where the hell was the comparison.

"I didn't say that."

"You were thinking it, why don't you just say what you think, at least that would be the truth." She scolded. "God damn it Riddick! Be real for once!"

"Well you did look pretty goddamned available last night, grinding out on that dance floor, maybe even looking for a good score out there last night." He said back coldly before she had a chance to think.

That blindsided her, she never actually expected him to comment further than he had. It was like she had been slapped, the blood drained from her face and she lost all hope of a good comeback. She stared dumbly at him for a moment, her eyes wide, mouth slightly open and face deathly pale. She saw regret pass across his face for the briefest moment as she pushed back her chair from the table, the metal chair scraping against the metal of the galley floor.

"Jack…" He said, trying to stop her but she held up her hands as she moved away from him.

"Don't, just don't!" She said in an aggressive whisper. "Maybe you should stay here for a couple of days and cool off, I'm going to go grab my things and head home to face whatever is there." Jack was shaking her head. "On my own!"

"Jack…" He stood up and closed the gap between them faster then she thought was possible. He grabbed her arm before she was able to twist away and she wasn't able to get away once she was in his grasp.

"Don't touch me!" She said as her voice quavered and she was glad that she hadn't put her hair up as it fell partially across her red face. She found herself shaking again, with a combination of suppressed anger and hurt. "I don't want to fucking hear it."

"I will touch you!" He barked at her and it only made her struggle more. But she knew she wasn't going to get away unless she thought up something slightly more spectacular then a tug.

"What? So you can add me to your list of skanks that you've fucked? Jack, your little whore!" She glared up at him, tears filling her eyes. Her jaw was clenched tightly and her chin quavered slightly as she fought for control over her emotions. Why did he have to go and swing an underhanded blow like that? "Fitting isn't it."

"Jack…"

"Just so you're aware." She said, one tear slipping down her cheek. "I've only slept with one man and that was just because it felt right, all those men that I told you about I learned skills from, engineering, different types of fighting skills, medic skills are you getting the picture? I did NOT fuck them!" Jack took a deep breath and wiped another tear away with her free hand. "Welcome to my life Riddick, I go to that club mostly to work on my down time so I can pay the bills and keep my ships running. When I go there to have a little fun, I've never had anyone look at me in comparison to the rest of the girls in there and compare me to a whore. Next time I'll stick to a jump suit, my piloting gear or grubby coveralls, or would a pair of jeans and a tank top be too revealing?"

After her speech she tired to break free of him again with a sharp twist but it didn't do her any good so she just stood there, looking defiantly at him, her anger making her breathing slightly heavier and her jaw clench. He said nothing at first, just looked at her with a typical 'no shit' expression on his face. This was Riddick…why had she let herself forget that?

"Feel better now?" His reply was a hard slap across the face.

"Don't you dare!" She snapped, her tone icy as her free hand snaked out and slapped him as hard as she could manage across his face. "You wanna know what would make me feel better? What would make me feel better would be for you not to have accused me of being a whore or you letting me go and pack my things and letting me leave without saying another word to me because you can't take back the things you say!"

"Jack you're not a whore. I shouldn't have said that."

"Ever heard the expression; from the heart the mouth speaks." She shook her head; he wasn't getting out of it that easily.

"Jack…"

"Let me fucking go! I don't care if you meant it or not, you said it." She glared at him and they fell back into silence, a silence that felt like it lasted for hours though it was only minutes and during those minutes she seethed.

"Are you going to listen to me now, Jack?" He asked softly.

"Why the hell should I? You've made me feel like a low life piece of shit and now I'm meant to listen to you? I don't think so!" Jack growled. "Now let me fucking go!"

"Not until you listen to me."

"Then fucking talk." She snapped, glaring at him.

"I shouldn't have called you a whore Jack. You got me riled up last night when I found you in that club looking like… god, you were so damn seductive and the way you moved… All I wanted to do was make you mine and let all those fucking guys know it, make them realize that they couldn't have what didn't belong to them." There was a possessive snarl in Riddick's voice as he spoke and Jack wanted to hit him over the head with something hard and scream _'Caveman'_ at him at the top of her lungs.

"I don't fucking belong to you either, so that little plan of yours was just slightly flawed." She said instead with a tone that said the rest quite clearly.

"You belong to me more then you belong to anything or anyone else in the worlds Jack and I intend to keep you." He was adamant.

"Well you're not doing a very good job of it are you, calling me a whore and all." She said dryly and he chose to ignore her words. He used a hand to gently wipe the tears from her eyes, the look on his face as intense as his tone had been.

"I need you to understand that I don't share with people and I don't play nice like the other guys you've dated. What's mine is mine and anyone who touches what's mine gets burned." There was that possessive snarl again and she gritted her teeth against the tenderness in his touch.

"I'm not dating you. I'm not fucking you. I'm not in any sort of relationship with you past friendship. **Get over it**." She glared at him.

"Don't twist this Jack. I've already told you, you _are_ mine."

"I wasn't asking you to share Riddick, there is no one out there but you that I'm interested in at the moment but we've already had this conversation. I had better hope that you don't bloody behave this way if I do ever decide that there is someone else out there for me. I can take this kinda shit from most people but I would have expected more from you until now." Jack said and took a deep breath as his fingers wiped at her tears, his palm lightly cupping her cheek as his fingers moved almost wistfully, keeping her head tilted up looking at him even though she seemed to want to look at the floor instead. "Please, just let me go." She was pleading with him and she hated herself for it.

"I told you Jack, I'm not going to let you go." Riddick said and pulled her to him.

Then she did something he hadn't been expecting; one foot connected with his instep, her knee connected with the inside of his thigh near his groin and her arm that wasn't being held in his vice-like grip rammed into his stomach. It was the first time in her time with him that she had ever made Riddick let go of her when he was pissed off and she had done it physically.

"Thank you!" She said aggressively and started to walk away, only to have her legs kicked out from underneath her. She landed flat on her back, letting out an 'OUFF' as she hit the floor, the bruise on her back throbbing again.

Riddick was on top of her before she was able to get her breath back and move; he pinned her arms tight at her sides and glared at her. He was angry as hell and she had made him that way and she didn't know what to do next. Then she found herself laughing, of all things she could have decided to do at that moment, she was _laughing_ and she didn't care if it made him more angry at her or not.

"What the fuck are you laughing about?" Riddick growled at her.

"This whole thing is just really, really funny. I mean, think about it from where I'm laying. I've been waiting for you to touch me and refuse to let go for weeks now but it's only after you see me dressed the way one of your fucking skanks dressed for you once or twice that you stop talking bullshit and act on your fucking feelings. And it's only after you call me a fucking hoe that you wanna touch me and won't let me go which is right around the time when I don't want you touching me and I would rather that you did let me go." She laughed again, trying hard not to concentrate on the fact that the object of her desire was hovering above her, his face inches from her's, the perfect contours of his body not far enough away for her to imagine it away. _'Not fair!'_ Her mind screamed.

"You're not a whore Jack, stop saying that since I've already apologized for that shit. May I add with credit that, that move fucking hurt too?" Riddick's face was less then two inches from hers, his shined eyes were glaring into her defiant green eyes, his mouth was a thin angry line, her lips curled sarcastically at the corners.

"Glad to hear I was able to give some of my own back." She said but the sarcastic smile was gone. She frowned at him. "I just dunno why you have to say shit like that. Did I really deserve it?"

"Jack, what I said wasn't right but you shouldn't have gone out like that, not without telling me. You wanna know how damn worried I was about you? You scared the shit out of me when I got back to your flat and you weren't there." He meant it and that in itself shocked her a little.

"What did you think was going to happen to me?"

"I thought that Merc had caught up with you. I got news that someone is digging for information on you, a guy who knew a little more about you and I then he should, turned up dead on New Mecca not so long ago and then his killer found Imam and threatened him for more information, most of which the holy man couldn't give anyway, not that he told him anything regardless of the threat." He answered her.

"You still talk to Imam?" The look on her face told him just how shocked that she was by that revelation.

"Rarely."

"Rarely? How did he get all of this information to you then?" She asked frowning and he suddenly wished he could take that look off her face.

"Because he has a way of contacting me and after some merc chases him about you or I, he lets me know about it. It's an arrangement that we made years ago so that I would have a better chance of keeping you safe and alive while you were with me, since I wasn't about to abandon you anyway and leaving you with Imam, even though I know he would have taken you in, wasn't an option because you made it deathly clear at the time that you hated the old man for leaving us."

"You know all of this could have been avoided if you had just told me what was going on instead of demanding that I didn't go. You know that doesn't work with me. You should know that by now." Jack shook her head.

"I didn't know until last night." He answered with a shrug.

"Then you really are an arse." She scolded and looked up at him, a soft smile appearing on his face as he looked at her. There was no regret there but she hadn't expected him to feel regret, it was enough for her that he had apologized (in a very Riddick sort of way) for what he said to her. Riddick wasn't the kind of man to apologize for or regret much; it just wasn't in his emotional and physical make-up. "I know how to be careful when I need to be and I know more then most just how guiltily I am of a good number of crimes. It's not hard for me to lay low when I know I need to."

"Did I ever mention that that whole thing bothers me Jack?"

"What you don't like the predator in me?" She cocked her head slightly and raised an eyebrow.

"Jack, don't play games."

"And yet games are so much fun to play." She answered.

"Jack, enough." He said in low tones.

"You not liking what I've done in the past two years doesn't change much, I'm afraid. The past is the past, there is no machine to change time and it's better that way, you just have to accept and live with the consequences of what you've done." She said. "It's the only way to learn from your mistakes."

"I wish I could change your past." He said and she knew he meant it as her eyes searched his and their lips were suddenly locked in a kiss that seemed to be initiated by magnetism. Because Jack's hands were trapped by Riddick's, the only way she could initiate more contact was by arching into him and he made a noise at the back of his throat that she understood all too well. Gods, he tasted better then she had ever imagined that he would.

"I'm meant to be pissed off at you, not kissing you. Not fucking fair!" Jack whispered when they broke apart and he released her hands. He chuckled at her comment as he stood up, pulling her up with him but keeping her close, her body flush with his. He knew the affect that he was having on her, damn him and he was taking plenty of pleasure in the fact that she was no longer able to think straight.

"You can try and be pissed with me all you like but it's not going to help you at all!" Riddick said as she moved into him, letting him wrap his arms around her without a fight and he felt the soft sigh that she fought from escaping her lips, her breath moving like butterfly wings over the skin of his shoulders.

She had her head buried in his shoulder as she let the remainder of her anger disappear and he knew without a doubt that he had stung her worse then he had intended too just by her actions, but then he had said some things that he hadn't intended to say. Jack had always been able to wind him up in ways that no one else could, she was one of the only people alive that could make him loose his temper.

She leaned back slightly so she could look at him better and he raised one hand to her face gently smoothing his fingers across her cheeks. She smiled softly at him, running her hands across the extremely tense muscles in his shoulders. "Relax, you're always so bloody tense, it gives me a headache."

"There's many different types of tension Jack, it just happens that I have a nice mixture of a lot of those different kinds of tension." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"Oh? Like what?" She wrinkled her nose at him, not being able to stop herself from teasing him a little as her fingers went to work, kneading the knots out of his shoulders and neck. A habit she had gotten into over the months she had been with Bret. Riddick growled lightly from the back of his throat and she grinned at him. She loved it when he did that because it was as close to a content purr that Riddick would ever get close to making.

"You have no idea what you're doing to me."

"Oh, I have a fare idea. Remember, I'm not as innocent as I may look." The look on his face that she got as a reaction to her words made Jack laugh before pulling him in for a hot opened mouthed kiss.

"You're just encouraging me Jack." There was a breathy warning there a few moments later that she totally ignored as he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her in tighter to him, close enough that she could feel just how she was encouraging him.

"Ever think that that was the whole point?" She raised her eyebrows at him and gave him an impish smile, not even trying to pull away from him. She just looked at him expectantly with that smile on her face and her lips slightly parted, her breath already caught in the back of her throat.

"Slowly Jack, slowly." He whispered as he purposefully tilted her head and brought his lips to hers.


	26. After

Jeeze Louise! It has taken me another extreme period in time to get one chapter out. I really have to stop making time promises.

I could try and explain to you the stress of quitting one job and moving nearly two hundred miles to start another job two days later and all while studying for an exam that has had me all twisted up in knots for days and weeks and months on end but that would be a very long and not so interesting story so we shall leave it as the above.

I had a lot that I needed to deal with in this chapter and I'm not sure how I feel about it yet, perhaps good, perhaps bad but this is what my muse had to offer me. I had two things that I wanted to deal with so that we could get onto the next plot twisting stuff and I hope that I have tied off all the untied ends that had nothing to do with what is too come.

I wanted to get Kevin's death partially dealt with (yes there will be more on that to come - call this perhaps the calm before the storm, delayed reactions are wonderful things) but I also wanted to get some of Jack's feelings out in the open and not feelings that she would perhaps want Riddick to know about right away.

Anyway….tell me what you think. Action starts kicking up in chapter 27.

Kayla

Chapter 26: After…

Jack was nervous, there was no other way to describe the way that her gut felt like it was twisting itself in knots. Not even the cool, calm presence of Riddick next to her could make her feel the same calmness. They had rang the bell, rang it twice and now she was carefully thinking about leaving, just leaving and going home or coming back another time.

She looked over her shoulder at Riddick. He looked back at her, his silver eyes protected by his dark goggles that she was beginning to hate the presence of and she sighed. "Best just leave I guess." She said in a bare whisper.

"Give them a minute." He answered her as the door that she was facing away from opened and Jonathan filled the doorway. Jack looked slowly back and bit her lower lip.

"Hi Johnny." She said softly, hoping that she looked more confident then she felt. Johnny looked at her for a minute, a frown firmly attached to his face.

"You'd best come in Jack." He said as he stepped out of her way. "Go through to the living room, I'll let Kelly and Candace know that you've come." He said and she did as she was bid.

She walked somewhat numbly down the hallway, Riddick behind her, the first two fingers of his right hand staying in contact with her lower back as she led them through to a living room that she knew very well. She took a seat on one of the corner chairs, her back to the wall and was slightly concerned that Riddick didn't feel relaxed enough to do the same. He stood standing, not in stance that she would say was defensive or aggressive but that was ready, ready for anything and that worried her.

"Riddick…" She looked up at him and he shook his head so she took a deep breath which she exhaled quickly through her mouth once more and Johnny entered the room, looking at them both seriously.

"What exactly happened to Kevin Jack?" Jonathan asked after he had taken a good look Jack who was sat down nervously in his living room.

"Johnny I…" She wasn't given time to hardly start what she was about to say when Candace strode into the room, followed by Damien and Kelly, a look of white furry on her face. It seemed that as she got better, more of the original Candace seemed to appear again and under different circumstances that would have given Jack a sense of relief but not at that moment, not with what was about to be discussed ahead of her.

"Where the hell have you been?" She demanded "_'I'll be back by three or four but if you need me you know where I am_'." The teenager mimicked, a look of disgust on her face. "Well, you were not back at three or four or that night for that matter and I did NOT know where you were or if you were alright and no one could tell me that either. All I got was a report that Riddick had killed a friend of theirs," She pointed at the Marks "And that you were in bad shape when they last saw you!" The girl snapped aggressively.

"He was no friend." Damien said under his breath, a scowl on his face too and Candace sent him an angry look and he shut up quickly. Damien it seemed had learned how to keep on the girl's good side while they were away.

"Fine fucking guardian you are Jack!" Candace glared at the older woman, hurt and anger clear as day on her face and it was the hurt that got to Jack the most. She hadn't thought that Candace cared enough to really be that hurt by her and she was sorry that she had let her down that much in the first place.

"I'm sorry you were worried Candy." Jack whispered.

"You were gone for two fucking days Jack!" Her voice was pleading, like she was desperate to be given an answer that she could trust and believe.

"I know how long I was gone and I'm sorry that I worried you Candy but I knew you were safe here with Johnny, Kelly and Joe." Jack said softly, she wished for a moment that Riddick would at least say something instead of just hover over her somewhat over protectively. That was Riddick though, a quite yet formidable presence, ever tangible but he only acted when he had to. It was probably best that he was saying nothing.

"What happened with Kevin Jack?" Kelly asked softly, touching the teenager's wrist and quieting her at least for a moment.

"We got into a fight over me no less. Not trying to blow my own trumpet or anything but yeah, me." She said sarcastically and then sighed, sobering, trying to let her anger slide away. "He tried it on with me again and when I said 'no', he pulled a blade on me." She shrugged like it was something that had been expected.

"He pulled a blade on _you_?" Jonathan sounded skeptical.

"Yes, pulled a blade on _me _I did not go running for a weapon the minute that the shit got tough. You saw him Johnny! He was off his face, totally fucked and he wasn't listening to me at all." Jack said slightly aghast that she wasn't being believed. "You know how volatile that Kevin can be Johnny and you know that I'm not some psychopath that instantly reaches for a weapon when the going gets tough."

"Shh, Jack." Kelly said before looking at her husband. "Let the girl talk first, ask questions once she's spoken."

"He pulled a damn blade on me and I was forced to defend myself. I didn't want to fight him but he wasn't going to have it any other way. I didn't want to hurt him, I was trying not to hurt him, just scare him enough for him to leave me alone. I would have left it at that, I would have." She cried. "But it didn't work that way. I ended up cut and flat on my back about to get my throat cut for me when Riddick found us. Kevin was going to kill me; kept saying that if he couldn't have me then no one was going to. Called me a whore because I wasn't being faithful to Bret. Said I was Riddick's bitch." Jack answered resisting the urge to reach for Riddick but he was one step ahead of her, he moved closer to her as if by instinct, the front of his arm brushing the back of her's.

"Oh?" Jonathan looked at her like there was something that she wasn't say or missing out.

"It was almost the same sort of situation with the merc who broke Kelly's back, remember Johnny? He was going to kill her so you killed him, are you getting the picture yet?" Jack snapped a little harshly. "Riddick had to kill him, he was going to kill me." She tried to clarify what she was saying.

"Yes, I remember, but did you forget he was a friend at some point along the line and not a fucking merc?" Jonathan answered back in a similar tone. "The merc that went after Kelly was no friend. Kevin was my friend, he was your friend too. Do I need to remind you about the countless times that he's had your back when the going has gotten tough for you Jack? He was your friend!"

"I know that damn it!" She yelled, her voice cracking with emotion but she had promised that she wasn't going to cry over it, not again.

"Kevin was no one's friend." Damian said under his breath again but no one seemed to listen to his comments.

"Damien, Candace…" Kelly started in a voice that was very much the mother in the woman, authoritative and yet soft.

"Yes, yes, I know, go somewhere else, anywhere else but _here_." Damien rolled his eyes and Candace glared at them all. "Come on Candy, time to go." The boy laid a hand on her arm but she angrily snatched it away, the fire in her temper getting the better of her.

"Damn it Jack!" The girl snapped but there was an almost pleading look on her face, her tone of voice as she continued much the same pleading tone that it had been earlier. "Why the hell is it that every time something gets serious I get sent away? I might only be sixteen but this affects me too and I deserve to know what is going on!"

"I'll tell you later, I promise. Please Candy…" Jack did a little pleading of her own, her head was pounding already and she didn't want to have more of a headache trying to keep her tone level and her words half-way respectable. She was upset and angry all at once and it wasn't helping her trying and keep things in perspective.

"Great, just fucking great! I'm getting out of his shit-hole of a place and going for a walk. I'll be back when I fucking feel like getting back!" She left the room and Jack flinched when the front door slammed shut. She couldn't blame her; she would have reacted the same way if she had been her.

Jack closed her eyes and let her hands hide her face. So far things were not going well. What had she expected? Anger from Johnny and Kelly, yes, but not from Candace. So far the teenager had reacted to things much the same way she would have if she had been in her shoes when it came to another death hanging over them but she had been mistaken when she thought she would take her two-day absence calmly.

'_Whose next to yell?'_ The thought passed her mind when she took a deep breath and calmly looked up again, her face a mask that she had perfected years ago when she had lived with Riddick and had tried to fool him into thinking that he hadn't hurt her or distressed her. It had never worked against him but it had against others, she could only hope that it would work for her again here.

"You should have scared him off Jack, not killed him." Kelly said calmly. Her voice was level, her tone light – there was no condemnation there, just concern and a little bit of sadness. Death had never sat well with Kelly, be it the Merc that had killed her brother or paralysed her to the man that had once been a friend. Kelly didn't like it.

"He wasn't learning his lesson and I killed him." Riddick spoke for the first time, his voice the ice voice, the voice he used when he was calling for no arguments, the voice he used before he killed. Jack winced; she could feel the tension in the room switch to him. She didn't want him too take all the blame for her but she understood that he was giving her the chance to get her breath back and get rid of the emotion so she could talk more effectively. "But I don't think you heard her right the first time. She said he was going to _kill _her. Personally, that was what concerned me the most. The fact that _he _was going to **kill**_ her._" Riddick spoke slowly and carefully.

"It wasn't that easy Kelly. I wasn't really myself at the time." She kind of mumbled, not wanting to have to explain what she meant, what it was like when the animal in her roared and took over. "I'm sorry that Kevin died, I really am, but he went too far. If he hadn't pulled that blade he wouldn't have died." Her voice got stronger as she continued on. "If he hadn't tried to kill me. It's not like I went out there to kill him."

"Kevin always had to play the fool didn't he?" Kelly shook her head, seemingly satisfied but what had already been said but Johnny wasn't quite ready to give up the argument yet.

"Why did you always have to be taunting him Jack?" Johnny asked. "You know that he was obsessed with you and yet you taunted him, threw it all in his face."

"I never went out to taunt him. I acted no differently in front of him then I would have in front of you or Joe, or Luke." She shook her head. "No differently."

"He had your back on more then one occasion and you just tempted him right to his death." Johnny shook his head.

"Johnny it wasn't like that. He picked a fight and then threatened me with a blade; I wasn't trying to get him killed." Jack shook her head wildly, suddenly more distressed then she had been since it had happened. She was distressed and suddenly afraid of the man in front of her. It wasn't that she thought he would hurt her physically, she knew he wouldn't but she was afraid that he was going to end his family's relationship with her, excommunicate her from the people that she was close to. "I didn't want him to die Johnny, I didn't!" Tears filled her eyes but didn't spill over. She wasn't going to cry now!

"Shhh." Riddick whispered, his hand reaching out and caressing the back of her neck and silencing her with just a touch. "Kevin died because he was stupid. I killed him, yeah, I killed him. But he walked into his own death willingly, he wasn't tempted or dragged. He pulled a blade and was about to kill Jack. When I got there, she was already bleeding. What kind of a friend does that?" She could hear the quiet threat in the tone of his voice as he spoke and it sent a shiver down her spine. Jonathan regarded him for a moment, his rhetorical question working over in the man's mind and then finally he nodded as if just at that moment seeing sense.

"You had us very worried Jack. We thought for a while that you had jumped planets." Kelly said and shook her head, a frown on her face and sadness clearly in her eyes. Johnny hadn't spoken again and that made something in Jack really hurt badly.

"I thought about it Kel, thought about it too hard but Riddick quickly pointed out the error in that train of thought. You all are my family, I've been this stubborn in keeping you thus far and I'm going to stay stubborn." Jack said but there was a hint of sadness in her voice. Riddick just let his hand rest on her neck, his thumb tracing lazy circles on her left shoulder, he was her reassurance and he knew it. "I'm sorry about Kevin Johnny, he was an ass and in the end deserved what he got, I won't say that he didn't but it doesn't mean that that was what I wanted or that I'm not sorry it came to that." She was blunt and then looked at her friend. "Really Johnny, I'm sorry." She said basically in a whisper.

"It'll be alright Jack, go home and start looking for Candace's father, if she comes back here, we'll send her after you." Kelly said almost dismissively, a blank sort of look on her face and Jack felt stung. One minute the older woman was worried about her, the next she was dismissing her. Confused…that didn't even explain the shock that Jack felt.

"Yeah, right, of course." Riddick felt tension flood Jack's shoulder muscles in a way she hadn't been tense before. "Again, I'm really sorry." Jack said almost formally before standing up and nodding, feeling numb. It felt like she had just been shown the door, that maybe she had stayed for a family that didn't want her any more. She wasn't, in truth, sure of what she had expected of Kelly but even in her imaginings of anger and worry or even shock, she hadn't expected being blanked at the end of it all.

"Let it go Jack." He whispered in her ear as he pushed a stray lock of hair behind it. She nodded and sighed as he settled his hand in the middle of her back and started to guide her out of the room.

"Johnny, why don't you go out and have a look for Candace and Damien? Riddick, why don't you go back to Jack's flat and let us two women have a little chat?" Kelly said as they were about to walked past the two Marks', catching Jack off guard enough to get a startled look from her.

"Jack?" Riddick's low voice was asking in a single word if she wanted to be left alone.

"Do you mind?" She looked up at his goggled face, wishing for a moment that she could see the look in his eyes that his goggles were hiding and he shook his head, his hand moving from her back to her hip, his fingers squeezing a light reassurance.

"I'll see you when you get home." He answered her, a smile touching the corners of his mouth as he placed a chaste kiss on her lips.

"See you later love." Johnny caressed his wife's face and both men left.

Jack stood awkwardly in the living room, looking and feeling not only uncomfortable but totally unsure of herself. Her only problem being that she didn't have any idea what Kelly wanted from her, she had already thought the woman and made herself clear with her shakes of the head and the blank expression. She cracked her knuckles nervously.

"Tea? Coffee?" Kelly asked after a moment.

"Tea would be nice." Jack nodded and followed Kelly through to the kitchen where she took a seat at the table. It felt so normal to just be sitting in Kelly's kitchen again that she didn't even think twice about nibbling on the grapes in the bowl that had been sat strategically in the center of the table to not only look pretty but to entice Kelly's family to eat something beside junk. It was a tactic that often worked better on Kelly's friends then her husband and son.

"I'm not angry at you about Kevin Jack, I'm sorry to say it but that man did have it coming to him." Kelly said in a tone that was meant to put Jack at ease as she put on the kettle. "But you should have known not to leave that girl alone for so long. I realize that the only example that you've had of raising a teenage girl is from Riddick looking after you but I would have thought that common sense dictated that much if your own experiences with him didn't tell you that at least."

"I know and I'm sorry and I realize that I shouldn't have done that but every time we thought about leaving, we got distracted again. Things just got heated so quickly…" Jack looked at the grape in between her fingers, her face turning slight red.

"You and Riddick are lovers now?" Kelly asked in a matter of factual tone that made Jack want to cringe but she was sure that it hadn't just been the quick kiss that had given the game away and it wasn't like she was trying to keep it a secret.

"I know you don't approve Kelly but-" Jack started somewhat uneasily.

"Stop right there Jack." Kelly poured boiling water in a teapot and set it along with two mugs on the tray in her lap before gliding over to the table and unloading her burden. "It doesn't matter if I approve or not as long as you're happy. I do however want to caution you if you'll let me."

"Caution me?" Jack raised her eyebrows.

"Yes, caution you." Kelly nodded.

"Fire away." Jack shrugged.

"Before you think it Jack, the age thing doesn't bother me, between Bret and my parents there was nearly a twenty year age gap and you know him far better then I but that's besides the point. There are a few things however that I do know about Riddick. He _is_ a murderer and from the things that I've read and you've told me he's known to be quite the womaniser too. I don't want to see you hurt because he's gotten tired of you and moved on and I don't want to see you hunted because of him either."

"I'd hurt worse and be hunted anyway if he weren't here and he won't up and move on Kel, that's not Riddick." She said. "I can't explain it. He was gone and that was fine I guess but then he was back and I realized that I had needed him so badly while he wasn't there and the ache in my chest because of that I can't begin to describe to you." She was searching for words she couldn't find to explain what she was trying to say and Kelly gave her a knowing look.

"You're in love with him." She said simply, like it was the most normal and natural thing in the universes.

"Yea- What?" Jack looked dumbfounded, the way she had been tongue tied before didn't compare to the way she was at that moment. She couldn't have articulated if her life depended on it. How had they gotten from the fact that Kevin was dead to speculating on her feelings for Riddick?

"You've fallen in love Jack." Kelly reiterated and Jack shook her head wildly.

"No, I haven't." Jack shook her head, a deep frown on her face. "I'm not in love Kelly, I'm not all that sure about my feelings for him past a deep need and attraction, even that doesn't quite get at what I feel."

"That's because you're in love with him Jack. That's alright you know, perfectly normal."

"No, it's not alright Kelly because I'm not in love, you don't understand." She said stubbornly.

"Denial is a funny thing Jack and it's not good for you, that much I know from personal experience. I've been in love with Johnny since I was seventeen years old, I know love when I see love, you're not fooling me and I doubt greatly that you've fooled your man either, he's smart, he knows what's going on better then you think hun."

"No, Kelly, no! It wouldn't work. He doesn't do love, he cares yes and he feels attraction, who doesn't but not love. And I'm not exactly the most loveable person out there Kel." She had paled a few shades and a sliver of fear penetrated her mind. "Where love is concerned, Riddick runs a mile."

"I'm pretty sure you'll find him where he said he'd be."

"Kelly…"

"Which is why he's barely letting you out of his sight?"

"Oh stop making sense Kelly! I'm happy with what I have, don't make me want more then what I can have." She gripped her mug tightly and stared at the milky tea, the only way Kelly made it, Jack's mother would have called it silver tea. "I know what it's like to be loved and I will never forget what it feels like but I'm happy the way I am. I'm content with Riddick and what he can give me. I can live without being in love."

"No one can live without love. Not even Riddick. He rejoined the human race for the love of a teenage girl who could potentially get him hurt or killed or sent back to the prison that was his hell. He came back looking for that girl after she nearly did get him killed and found a far different woman who was as magnetic and alluring as the teenager had been, only in a totally different way. It happens perhaps more often then you would like to think, love draws the best or the worst out in people, it's got a habit of doing that."

"I know. Remember when Johnny killed that Merc? I got that he was strong and capable of all sorts of violence but he was so unshakable that I don't think I ever thought he would get violent and all of a sudden he was killing that man because he hurt you. Killing him one second and tenderly lifting you and carrying you out of there the next." The corners of Jack's mouth twitched slightly but not enough to form a smile.

"Yeah, I remember that too. Scared the shit out of me but made me feel hell of a lot better at the same time." Kelly nodded. "You must have been glad when Riddick killed Kevin."

"Glad that he was there, glad that he hadn't been too late. I was not glad that Kevin was dead." Jack answered with a shrug. "My parents didn't need to be in love to be happy. They were just the perfect high society match. Mama once told me that the only reason that her and papa had agreed to the match was because they were good friends, had been since they were kids."

"But they did love each other on a level I'm sure."

"On a level but then it could be argued that I love Joe and Johnny and Luke on a level."

"But who knows how long even that kind of love could have lasted if you hadn't been born. Without reason it could have fallen apart Jack. Just like any marriage that might have happened between you and Bret."

"What doesn't that mean?" Jack snapped, feeling slightly affronted. She was sick of watching herself be analyzed.

"That I'm not a fool. Bret loved you deeply but that doesn't mean that it would have worked because you didn't love him the same way back. I'm not blind Jack, though, I do believe that you would have tried and that you thought that him loving you would have held everything together as long as it was coupled with your willpower which I know is strong, but how long could your willpower have held everything together?" Kelly asked.

"Indefinitely. I don't let myself be ruled by pure emotion Kelly. Love doesn't make life a walk in the park, sometimes it's better without it because it doesn't hurt as badly." Jack shook her head.

"I'm not sure I would agree with you. At that time in Bret's life he was happy and I am forever grateful that he understood what love was before it was too late, before that man killed him or another man tried to." Kelly said with a shrug.

"Don't get sentimental on me Kel, you'll make me cry." Jack bit her lip.

"Then cry damnit! You never have done enough of that." Kelly laughed.

"I'm sorry I didn't love him like I should have Kel." Jack shook her head. "He really did deserve so much more then what he got." Bret had been one of the few good things in Jack's life and she would never deny the effect that he had had in shaping the woman she had become. At that time in her life she had needed someone to love her, someone to believe in her and Bret and facilitated that role without her even asking him too.

"Don't be sorry. He was happy."


	27. Beau'

Well here is Chapter 27...hell i am on a roll all of a sudden, perhaps it's the time that having a chest infection and not being allowed out of bed gives me...i dunno. Well so the real ass kicking didn't get to happen here but everything has finally been set in motion, i feel like i've been leading up to this point for months.

Lets put it this way, a big sigh of releif for me today.

Please review as always, makes my day.

Kayla

Chapter 27: 'Beau'

"Jack!" Sam stood up quickly as Riddick entered the room, setting the lights to low and peeling off his goggles. "Riddick. Where's Jack?"

"Not here." He answered her, taking in her slightly disgruntled appearance and the cut that ran along her jaw.

"He's going to come for her and you can't be around when he does because if you are, then he'll take you instead." She shook her head her words coming out rushed and unthought out. "You're going to get her killed."

"What the hell are you talking about? And how the hell did you get in?" Riddick asked, anger under the surface that was all so cool.

"Jack gave me a key last year, when my relationship with my husband started to break down. There are a lot more people with keys to this place then you probably have any idea about. Jack has always had something of a mothering quality about her or hadn't you noticed? She always does her best to give people a way out of the messes they get themselves in." Sam sat back down on the couch and Candace walked in with two mugs of coffee in her hands.

"Hey Riddick, didn't hear you come back in." The teenager said with a false cheerfulness that Riddick didn't appreciate. There was still anger behind her eyes, it seemed that he had betrayed her as much as Jack had as far as she was concerned. What was it with teenagers and blaming him for shit?

"I don't tend to make a lot of noise." He said as Candace turned her back on him and handed Sam a mug of coffee.

"I'll be right back with the first aid kit for the scratch." The girl set the other mug on the coffee table. She then turned and left the room again.

"Where's Jack?" Sam asked again the minute that Candace had left the room.

"With the Marks." He answered her.

"Kelly was always good with advice." Sam nodded. "Any luck finding the kid's dad?"

"None yet." He shook his head.

"They haven't been around much. He killed someone who tried to kill Jack and then they just disappeared for a few days without even telling anyone where they were. That's certainly the best way to handle everything isn't it? Disappear without a trace." Candace said sarcastically.

"I'm sure it wasn't intentional, Jack isn't like that kid." Sam frowned.

"Then Jack must have left her brain on _The Aurora_."

"Do you have any idea when Jack will be back?" Sam asked, giving Candace a frown that asked for silence and grudgingly, Riddick notice, she gave it. The teen it seemed didn't want to get Sam pissed off though she didn't seem to mind bothering him.

"None."

"You have to understand just how serious this is Riddick. He knows what she looks like, what her main aliases are and everything there is to know about her past with you. He's coming for you but he is going to go through her." Sam shook her head; as far as Riddick could make out she didn't know what to do next. "The damn Merc looked like he wouldn't mind killing me and I'm sure he would have just for her address, if it hadn't been for Danny's arrival I wouldn't be alive right now."

"Do you know which Merc it was?" Riddick's attention immediately changed focus as Jack spoke from the doorway into the room. She looked slightly troubled but otherwise unaffected or hurt. "You're the one that talks to mercs all the time and all I need is a name."

"The same Merc that was on our ship. The only one that you've spoken to." Sam answered.

"James Bradley?" Jack asked and moved closer to him, the anger in her face readable as she stood next to him so that her shoulder was up against his side. His eyes swept over her face only to see a desperate need for comfort behind the cold look in her eyes. What had she spoken with Kelly about?

"If that was his name then yeah." Sam nodded.

"Great! He said he'd be seeing me again. I thought everything would just blow cold and then he'd get bored and leave everything alone." Jack bit her lip as she sighed deeply. "Can I take you anywhere or help you at all Sam, you look kinda a mess."

"I'll be fine, I just thought you had better know. I'm meeting up with Danny and getting a shuttle with him back to the Station. I've been in contact with Captain Manor and he's agreed to me living abroad _the Aurora_ until things for me settle down."

"So you're leaving?" Candace asked.

"Safer that way. I don't want my throat cut or at least I don't want anyone to try again." Sam shook her head. "I'll see you around kid." She said to Candace.

"Hope not, that'd mean that my dad's unfindable."

"Ya, well, you know what I meant. See ya Jack, bye Riddick." Sam stood up and Jack followed her out of the room.

"How much trouble are we in this time?" Candace looked up at him, all humor and sarcasm gone from her voice. The teenager looked genuinely concerned.

"I'm not sure." Was Riddick's reply.

---

The creature had become more and more volatile since it had woken from it's unnatural three week sleep and put in it's new cage in Dr. Johnston's main lab. It had started off just pacing endlessly and eating little, then one day the pacing just stopped and it got aggressive. It's massive wings beat against the bars, the clawed hands clicked and snapped when anyone came near and it rarely stopped screeching.

"That thing is giving me a headache Kirsten." Kirsten's sister an expert on reptilian behaviour looked at her sister and shook her head.

"You and me both little sister." Kirsten moved away from the microscope she had been using and peeled off her clear latex gloves, throwing them in the disposal unit before rubbing her eyes. It had been another long day and things only seemed to get worse rather then better and the constant noise from Beau wasn't helping matters at all. "Oh shut up Beau!" She yelled at the creature.

"Who came up with the name 'Beau' anyway. That has to be the ugliest reptile that I have ever seen." Laura shook her head.

"Hence the irony in the name miss Leal." Dr. Johnston walked into the darkened room and placed the light shields around the creature with a touch of a button. The light shields drown out some of the sounds that Beau was making and made it so that the scientists could turn the overhead lights on.

"Indeed." The younger sister looked unimpressed.

"Do either of you have anything to report?" Dr. Johnston looked at them.

"It's eating again." Kirsten answered as she watched Laura skirt their employer and peel off her own latex gloves, disposing of them and tying her long dark hair up into a bun at the nape of her neck.

"And who do I have to thank for that?"

"Laura. I told you she was the best in her field." Kirsten frowned. "I don't deal with reptilian behaviour."

"I'm still unconvinced that it is really a reptile." Laura said dryly. "And it's behaviour does make me think that it is going insane."

"That's besides the point." Kirsten snapped. "I don't deal in reptilian behaviour. I don't deal with animals. I deal with chemicals. Atoms, molecules, chemical composition. Not blood, flesh and bones."

"You sound angry Kirsten." Dr. Johnston looked at her a frown on his face now. It seemed that his research assistant had had quite enough of being placid and unconfrontational. He had, of course, been warned by her previous employers of the extra fire in her temper before he had employed her himself but she was a brilliant scientist and he needed that.

"Angry doesn't cut it this time." Kirsten yelled at him. "I'm in a lab with a creature that won't shut up, I haven't slept for thirty-eight hours and twelve minutes and I should never have dragged my sister into this. That thing is going to end up killing someone here or getting loose and we haven't worked out if they are A-sexual or not yet."

"You're over stepping your mark miss Leal!" Dr. Johnston stood up and faced his outspoken research assistant down. That's when the younger Leal moved to stand shoulder to shoulder, the younger, if it was possible, looked more threatening then the elder.

"Don't even think about threatening her Dr. Johnston. She's voicing her very valid opinion." Laura said. "She's being worked out of her skin here and she knows more about that creature then you or I probably do."

"No. She understood the assignment when she agreed to be on my payroll, she also understood the job that she would be doing and the possible dangers that went along with it. I will not have either of you dictate to me. You either continue to do your jobs or I will ruin you." Dr. Johnston replied to the young woman's caution. "Do you both understand me very clearly?"

"Oh we understand you but I will return your threat with a threat of my own. A copy of all the data ever collected on T2, about T2 or about the creatures like Beau has been forwarded to a very secure location with instructions that if anything should ever happen to my sister or I it would be released, not only to your rival scientists but also to the proper authorities that you bypassed getting here." Kirsten said, her normally light voice, low and deadly serious. "Do we have an understanding Dr.?"

"Indeed I think we do Miss Leal. An agreement in most cases to disagree but not push each other." The doctor looked slightly infuriated at the cheek of his own employees.

"How about the three of you and I come to an agreement?" Kirsten turned around, instinctively positioning her little sister behind her. The man that stood in front of her was clean-shaven and pleasant on the eyes, his hair was dark, skin tanned and eyes a dark iron grey. His attire was well turned out and looked almost like a precinct peace keeper's uniform because of it's navy color and gold trim but lacked any peace keeper's markings. That and most peace keepers that she had encountered didn't hold a gun in each hand as he spoke to the public.

"And who exactly are you?" Dr. Johnston asked his annoyance penetrating his voice.

"I'm no one that you want to play games with doc. I want information and you're going to give me every ounce that I want." The man said and his eyes drifted toward the two women.

"And all I wanted to do was go home to bed." Laura said as Kirsten took her hand and gave it a squeeze. Laura returned the gesture and fell silent when she saw that the stranger observing them.

"Been a long time since you've slept?" He addressed them, clearly having heard Laura's comment.

"Close to thirty-nine hours and this is not helping my temper." Kirsten answered, her tone near feral.

"So I can see. I want to see the creature that was pulled off T2, I want answers about it, about Jack and about her friend Richard B. Riddick and then you can go home and then to bed, what do you say?" He said, his tone was certainly more pleasant then hers.

"Not a problem on most of those points." Kirsten nodded to her sister to move over to the control panel. "But we don't know shit about any Richard B. Riddick, except for what we read in the news archives before going to T2."

"Interesting how someone can be right under your nose and no one even realises it. He must be under some fool impression that no one's looking for him anymore." The man chuckled but the laughter never reached his cold grey eyes.

"Before you look at the creature we've got to make some things very clear. This is one of the most dangerous creatures known to man, do not get within five feet of it or you may end up dead. For you to see it, I have to dim the lights to basically nothing because light kills it. Are we clear on all that?" Kirsten said, not appreciating his mocking tone.

"How many other people know this thing exists?" The man asked, again serious in his line of questioning.

"This particular creature or the species?" Dr. Johnston asked.

"This particular creature."

"Only our contact on _The Aurora_." Dr. Johnston replied again.

"And how do you assume that Jack would react?" The man adjusted his hat, his eyes watching the scientists closely.

"With hostility. We'd probably get a visit and she'd probably attempt to kill the creature." Kirsten answered with a frown.

"We might just be able to help each other Doctor." The man shook his head as the lights went down low.

---

"I don't want to split but if you think it's best…" Jack was sitting crossed legged on their bed, watching Riddick pace the floor in front of her.

"I don't know what's best to do Jack but I know what works." He admitted to her.

"I'm not going to let you get caught because of me." She shook her head furiously suddenly off on a train of thought all her own. "I'm not going to let you get sent back to slam or get ghosted because of me. Take Candace and leave in _The Gemini_. I'll stay and get this thing cleaned up."

"Jack…" His tone of voice told her to try and be reasonable.

"Riddick please, you know how I would feel if anything were ever to happen to you because of me and I have unfinished business here, Bradley is only part of that. I really need to deal with this shit before jumping systems." She said.

"What exactly am I meant to do Jack? Leave you? Let you get caught, maybe killed?"

"If it comes to that then yes. Don't argue with me over this Riddick. You've kept me safe for a long time. It's my turn now, no matter what the consequences are. I can get this man off our ass, so let me do it." She snapped. "I've thought about this hell of a lot since I was a teenager and because of recent developments that just makes keeping you safe and out of slam all the more important! Anyway, it's not just you and me that we have to worry about. Candace is only sixteen, what happens to her if both of us end up dead or in prison?" She stood up and gave him a look that she could only hope he'd understand. Him going to slam was more then her life was worth, at least she thought it was and they really did have other things to worry about, life wasn't that simple anymore.

"More important then your own life?" He gave her an angry glare speaking as if he was reading her mind. "If this is your idea of payback for what ever you think you have to pay me back for then you and I are going to have to have a very serious conversation because you owe me _nothing_! And don't you think the kid would be a whole lot happier with you then stuck with me."

"This isn't owing, it's about how much I care!" She said hoarsely as she closed the gap between them. Riddick's hands snaked out, pulling her close to him, one hand gripped her shoulder tightly and the other caressed her cheek. "And I don't know if I can just up and leave right now. Not after everything that's happened."

"I'm not going to let you die Jack, not for me, not for anyone. I swore once that you would make it out alive and that promise includes now. What do I have to do to convince you to shut the fuck up and do as you're told?" He said aggressively as he forced her to look him in the eye.

"Riddick!"

"What the hell are you thinking about here Jack? Do you have a fucking death wish or something?" He looked honestly distressed and for that she was sorry for a moment but her mind was spinning with a thousand possibilities that she had been living with during her whole time with him.

"Of course I don't, I'm just making a choice. If I stay then you can get away, which gives you and Candace a shot I never wanted to take away in the first place." She knew she must look as desperate as he looked distressed by her actions. "Please stop taking this the wrong way Riddick. I can always catch up with you both later."

"How am I meant to take it Jack? You're talking in suicidal terms." He snapped back.

"And you're talking about running again. Running isn't always the answer!" She growled at him.

"I'm not going to let him hurt you Jack, even if it means going back to slam to make sure of it then I damn well will." He said stubbornly and Jack knew that this could turn into a horrible battle of wills and she almost already knew who was going to win that and she would end up exhausted. "You don't know what you're asking me to let you do Jack, you really don't."

"I know exactly what I'm doing!" She looked hurt and abruptly turned away from him and walked a few feet away her own arms wrapped around herself. "Do you know how long I used to lay awake at night, worried that when I woke up in the morning you wouldn't be there anymore, before I did finally drift off? Do you have any idea what it would do to me knowing that you weren't there, not by choice but because I'd let you go to slam to save my skin?"

"Jack I wouldn't have left you then but I never had to worry about this shit then. Jack I'm not leaving you, especially not now. If I go you're coming with me, if you won't go them I won't be going anywhere."

She shook her head, her day so far had brought her life into a little more perspective. Ever since the crash of _The Hunter Gratzner_ people had been putting their lives on the line for her and a good number of those people had died for her because they hadn't realized that she wasn't worth saving, it was a fact that she hated with a passion.

She pulled her hair out of her ponytail as she sat down in a chair with her back still to him. Carolyn had been the first to lay it on the line for her, although, she had died saving Riddick. Riddick had kept her safe for five years, taking those two damn bullets for her on Demedia. Her friend from the Academy, Jamie Linwood hadn't even woken her up properly before putting her in and jettisoning the emergency pod from his ship before he could get off himself and died in the subsequent crash.

Bret Robson had been foolish enough to fall in love with her and not take her initial _'no I do not what to go out with you'_ for a final answer. She had been foolish enough to weaken and move in with him, only for him to come home one night to find her being threatened at gunpoint. That had been the first time that Jack had ever seen him get violent and he took a bullet in the chest just to save her. Kelly Marks, his sister, had lost the use of her legs and was on the wanted list for slam because she was covering up for Jack.

What was it about her that seemed to instantly make people willing to lay down their lives for her? Whatever it was, she hated it venomously.

"Jack?" Riddick's hands were suddenly gently rubbing the tension out of her shoulders and neck, his calloused fingers dancing across her skin. Gods, it felt too good. She couldn't let him get her side tracked.

"I'm not worth dieing for Riddick! Too many people have died or bled or lost because of me." She said. "Please Riddick, promise me you won't die for me, not again."

"Let me worry about who dies and who doesn't." Riddick turned her around so that she was facing him.

"I don't want anyone else-" He silenced her with a shake of the head. Jack closed her eyes and then opened them again and nodded her head. It would be hard as anything to let him do the worrying but she would let him anyway. That was what he wanted. She really had to get a little more disobedient, she scolded herself.

"You feeling better now?" He asked and she shrugged but a faint smile passed across her lips, more at her own thoughts then anything.

"I will be, I'm just worried."

"Don't." He said drawing her forward and placing a soft kiss on her lips. "It's going to be fine, we've gotten through worse."

"Maybe, but there weren't other people involved then that I cared about besides you." She still had that sad frown on her lips.

"Jonathan will easily be able to keep his family safe. We'll lock up this place, take everything of importance and leave with Candace until the storm had blown over." He said as if it was the easiest thing in the world. "You and the kid could use a holiday anyway." He shrugged.

"I'll tell Johnny." She nodded, knowing that it was going to be harder then she had ever imagined to leave the people who had become her family because she knew that where Riddick was concerned, holidays became extended and weeks away turned into years.

---

"Mr. Emerson I'm assuming." Mr. Bradley shook his head as the Doctor's contact from _the Aurora_ showed up in the doorway of the darkened room, looking past the four people gathered in the room, his eyes coming to rest on the creature who let out an eerie screech and stretched it's leathery wings.

"Is that what I was stupid enough to let you take off that planet?" The young man asked.

"That would be correct. Meet Beau." Kirsten nodded; if this plan of the bounty hunter's wasn't put into effect soon then she was going to have a very serious and very violent conversation with him until he agreed to let her and her sister go home. She was loosing her rag.

"Why don't you take a seat lad." Dr. Johnston motioned for the young man to take a seat near him. "You and I need to have a little chat for which you will be richly compensated later."

"We do? About what?" He sat down next to Kirsten who sighed and rested her head on the open palm of her hand, a yawn being suppressed by the tightening of her jaw.

"I'm looking for the mass murderer Richard B. Riddick. I've already established his connection with one Jacqueline Stewart, you may or may not know her as Kit O'Donnell and I'm also aware that Riddick has spent the last number of weeks aboard _the Aurora_ with Miss Stewart." Mr. Bradley said, walking around to face the young man in front of him.

"So what does that have to do with me? It was the Captain's choice to allow him to say about without calling the Mercs tracking his ass as a favor to his pilot. I don't see how I could help at all, that was a while ago." He had paled all of a sudden, his tone becoming highly defensive as he looked at the neat looking bounty hunter with his dangerous smile.

"I need to get my hands on Riddick and the only weakness that I've been able to find he has is Jack so I need to get my hands on her first to get my hands on him." Mr. Bradley explained.

"Which is where you come in lad. If Miss Stewart was aware that there is one of these creatures on the planet and she knew of it's location she would do her beat to kill it would she not?" Dr. Johnston turned to the young man once more.

"More then likely but you still haven't told me what that has to do with me."

"You're going to make her aware and give her the location of Beau here. You are going to be my lour." Mr. Bradley said a sly smile making his hard yet handsome features look all the more sinister.

"Jack's a friend, I'm not going to walk her into a trap where she's going to get hurt." The frown on the young man's face deepened and he looked offended by the very obvious thought that he would betray his friends.

"Is she enough of a friend to die for Mr. Emerson?" The bounty hunter asked as he whipped a blaster out of his side holster and pressed it's mouth to his head.

"Why don't I call her and tell her that there's a gun to my head?" He snapped back as beads of sweat jumped out on his forehead. So it seemed that he had some guts in him after all and that made James Bradley smirk.

"How about you just stick to the original idea. I'm not out to hurt Miss Stewart, I just need her as bate. After Riddick is nicely packed off to a maximum security Slam then she'll be released unharmed to her family and crew if that makes you feel any better about it."

"Riddick saved her life, she's very attached to him, I doubt quite seriously that she'd ever let him come after her." He protested again. "She won't tell you where he is."

"But even you can't deny the fact that they were practically joined at the hip on board the ship. How he shadowed her every move." The Doctor seemed almost desperate for him to agree with him.

"But I would also say that, that had a great deal to do with Jack tolerating his presence. If she didn't want him somewhere he tended not to be there. He respected her wishes."

"I'm willing to take the chance that they weren't as attached to each other as we're all assuming. You're life or the vid call boy." It was clear that the bounty hunter had come to the end of his patients.

---

Jack had just had a long conversation with Johnny and Riddick was taking a carload of their valuables to _The Gemini_, having promised to pick up an upgraded food synthesiser unit and enough food cards to last a few months of travel o his way there.

Candace had taken the news of their imminent departure rather well all considered and had dragged the unwitting Damien out shopping, her promise to pack the rest of her things when she got back the last that she had heard from the teen as she ran out of the door.

She was sitting on the couch with a feeling that everything was happening too quickly to be comfortable as she stared around at what had been her home for nearly two and a half years. She had so much that she hadn't done that she had planed to do and it gave her a sinking feeling in her stomach but she knew that this time Riddick was right; it was time to move on, take a few month sojourn and wait for the dust to settle.

They left at 2am that coming morning.

Johnny had taken the news calmly, Damien had been tight lipped, Joe had been disgruntled but had insisted on coming round with some flight aids before she left and although Kelly had been understanding she made it clear that she was both unhappy and upset but the sudden decision even though she understood the reasoning behind it.

Bret would have been rolling in his grave over this latest blow. He at least would have understood her need to have Riddick in charge of this whole venture. He would also have understood why she was so reluctant to leave her home.

The vid phone buzzed and she moved to the wall and pressed the button that would answer it. "Hi." She answered with a chirp when she saw John's slightly pale face on the screen.

"Hi Jack. How's things?" He answered, his mouth stretching in a forced smile, which wasn't like him.

"Not too bad. Am just packing up Candace to go on holiday and try and find her father. The kid's really excited." Jack answered. "Did Sam make it up to the station alright with Danny? She was pretty shaken when I saw her last."

"I'm not sure, I'm planet side at the moment."

"Bad flight? You look pretty pale."

"Pilot was pretty green but that's not why I called."

"We all were green at some point bet they will be fine with a bit of practice. What's your news then?" She gave him a smile and a shrug.

"Got some information I think you want to know, it's not the most thrilling info and I'm sorry."

"What is it?"

"They brought one of those creatures back with them from that planet Jack. It's already killed three of the researchers and Dr. Johnston is refusing to kill the thing. He's pretty insane."

"Do you know where it is?" Jack was suddenly serious, a chill running up her spine.

"I'll send you a map." John's face disappeared as a data steamed map appeared in it's place.

"He won't kill the thing?" Jack asked again.

"Nope, his researchers have been after him to do it for days but he won't." John reiterated.

"If he won't do away with it then I will. Thanks for the information John." Jack turned off the connection and ran through to her room, quickly changing into black as she loaded the weapons that she thought she would need in a shoulder bag.

She scribbled Riddick a quick note and ran out of the door:

_I have some business to take care of._

_Will be at the launch at 1:30. If I'm not_

_there go anyway. I'll be right behind you_

_in Chancer._

_Jack_


	28. Hello Mr Bradley

Hey all,

Yes i know it's been a long time but i hope you haven't given up on me or the story yet so here is installment 28.

Kayla

Chapter 28: Hello Mr. Bradley

The building was in complete darkness but Jack had suspected that, that would be the case. The only lit part of the building was the main entrance where pair of security guards was sitting behind their desk chatting away about their home life or the latest sporting event. They were probably unaware of the danger that was being experimented on in the labs above them. That thought alone was enough to make Jack shudder from top to toe.

She shuddered as she disappeared down an alleyway close to the main building. The shoulder bag was dropped on the ground as she knelt down beside it, opening the zipper and pulling her things out.

A black baseball cap was fixed firmly on her head, she tucked night vision glasses in her breast pocket, sure that she would need them later. She put her gun belt on before slipping a blaster in each holster, one on either side before tucking a glock in both pockets of her vest jacket that was deigned for that purpose.

A small skiando went down the side of her boot before she re-laced it and concealed two shivs of Riddick's design within easy reach. For all intent and purposes she was perhaps over doing it a little with the weaponry but she was desperate to go in there without under estimating the creature or the good doctor. If he was a smart bastard worth his PHD then he had probably become paranoid.

This was a fight she was going to win and then she would go back to concentrating on saving her own skin. But fear of the uncontrollable and the known danger made beads of sweat trickle down her spine as she re-zipped her bag and stashed it next to a dumpster.

There was a letter still inside it explaining what she had set out to do if for some reason she never made it out again. It was stamped and addressed for the fool who found it to send off. Kelly would get an unfortunate letter if it came down to that. She hoped that it didn't.

Jack stood up and stretched, rotating her neck and shoulders, stretching out the muscles in her spine and legs before exiting the alley again and walking down the street that would lead her past the main building to the back fire exits or at least that was the case in the floor plans that John had sent her along with the map over the vid phone.

The pavement was slick even under the heavy grip of her big black boots as she neared the entrance to the research building, she pulled her glock from the pocket in her vest jacket, made sure the clip was secure in the gun and her spare was tucked safely and securely in her pocket before making her way up the stairs. Her body hugged the building and she watched every step as she moved using all the lessons that sergeant Cody and Riddick had taught her.

"_Third floor, live research room."_ Her mind told her again and again as she reached the right level. The gun in her hand swept the whole window frame before she crouched beneath it to slip on the glasses she would need to see inside. Riddick had once told her that the thermal vision selection was as close as she would get to what it was like to have shined eyes without committing to the procedure. It was almost strange, she felt, that that thought had come to her mind at that moment.

She stood again and broke a corner of the pane of glass so she could open the fire door and then slipped into the darkened building, her gun and eyes sweeping the area for security patrols, researchers who had chosen that night to stay in and work late, sensory devices or CCTV cameras that would alert security to her presence in the building.

A screech ripped through the air around her and an involuntary shudder ran through her whole body, the memories of a frightened and hiding fifteen year old re-surfacing trying to push panic down her throat which she flatly refused to give into.

Later, she promised herself, later when she could recant the story while relaxing and with Riddick's arms and presence within easy reach. Then it would be safe and she would have a way to keep the panic and memories at bay. If there was a later, something cynical in her said. The problem wasn't so much that she was cynical but that she was experienced, far too experienced.

It was too late for her to let the feeling in her gut to take her back outside the building and stay away from her target. The creature would end up dead and she could do her best to slip away before anyone realised what had happened. That would be the trick, not tripping any alarms and getting out without hurting anyone. Tonight was not a good night to get cornered so that her only way out was a fight.

She didn't want to give mercs who were oblivious of her other kills reason to go looking for her for other then her connection with Richard B. Riddick, a man wanted in nearly every galaxy. It wasn't in her to go after blood for anything but the severest reasons. If he wouldn't give up the creature then she wouldn't hesitate to go after blood, as long as it was his blood.

Jack slunk along the corridor until she got to a darkened room with the words, 'Live Testing' on the door. Her eyes swept the corridor, looking once more for any signs of life or security that she hadn't noticed before. Again there was none so Jack steeled her emotions and gripped the door handle, giving it a firm twist and pushing it open at the same time.

The room was dark, two desks and a testing table in the middle of the room, the desk strewn with notes and test results. At the far back of the room was a large cell-like structure and it was from within that cell there came a screech and a flurry of movement that she found disturbing beyond what most could imagine.

She pulled the blaster out and held both in front of her as she moved into the room, skirting one desk, her eyes firmly on her quarry, her other senses trained on her surroundings as she moved.

The door clicked shut!

Jack spun round, her guns pointed at the shadowy figure that had a gun of his own trained on her. She flicked the priming switch on her blaster with her thumb and her trigger finger on her glock tightened, hovering over the trigger in anticipation of the shot she was sure would soon follow.

"Jackie, Jackie, Jackie." The voice of Mr. James Bradley said from behind her and to her left. Jack left one gun pointed on the man at the doorway while she turned her head and moved her glock swiftly so it was pointed at the Merc.

"How nice of you to join us Miss Stewart. Didn't you bring your shadow?" Dr. Johnston's voice said from the doorway and she fired a warning shot three inches from the spot that he moved to.

"I wouldn't move if I were you Doc." Jack said calmly.

"And I wouldn't shoot my associate if I were you Jacqueline." James Bradley said and made a motioning movement with is second gun and John, Kirsten and another woman walked out from behind the desk they had been hiding behind.

"John?" Jack looked at her 'friend' in disbelief.

"I'm sorry Jack. They had a gun to my head! They told me that if I didn't call you and get you here that they'd kill me and these two girls. They aren't really after you Jack, I mean Dr. Johnston wants your insight but they're really after Riddick." John said; he was pale and looked close to completely panicking.

"That dumb fuck isn't getting my insight!" Jack snapped. "And Riddick isn't even in this planetary system anymore. He couldn't deal with civilisation, hated me working at the club and didn't for obvious reasons want to go looking for Candace's father. So he fucked off again and he won't be coming back this time. There's too much baggage in my life now for him."

"He didn't want you with him?" James Bradley asked.

"Of course he did but on his terms and that's just not an option, I have a life now. He was welcome to become a part of that life but I wasn't going to leave it for him." Jack shook her head. "You're worse then Riddick, you know," She informed the Merc. "Chasing old men and their families, holding people hostage, killing your informants along the way and for money. At least when Riddick kills he kills because he has a reason."

"You've heard about the death of the man on New Mecca then?"

"I have my own network of informants." Jack sent another shot at the Doctor as he tried to move, this one grazing his cheek. "I said don't move!"

"And I told you not to shoot at my associate." Bradley said taking his attention off Jack while he took his shot at his hostages. John for once was one step a head of the Merc, pulling the two women to the floor with him as he hit the deck, the shot flying over their heads. Jack shot at the doctor again and he hit the floor too. As she had made her shot she had slid her glock across the floor to John and pulled her other gun as Mr. James Bradley looked in her direction.

They both let off a shot. His badly aimed shot grazing her thigh while her's hit it's mark, tearing through his right shoulder. Pain sheered through her leg as she forced herself to keep a hold of both of her weapons and leap across the desk that john and the two women were behind.

"Jack you're hit!" John said.

"No time for that! I know you have had some security training, don't worry about killing the Doc or the Merc if you have to. Just get these women out. I have a rucksack in an ally near here, get it and take it to _Zion_ when you can, either give it to me then or give it to Johnny alright?" She said and gritted her teeth against the pain as she heard Bradley groan as he got up again. "Now go, I'll cover you!"

"I'm sorry about all of this Jack." John said as he gripped his gun and the three prepared to move.

"Get them out and count yourself forgiven." She answered as she leapt up and fired three times, once at the Doctor to keep him face down on the floor and twice at the Merc as John and the two scientists flew for the door. The Merc returned fire, his shot grazing the top of her left bicep making her cry out as she moved from where she had been standing to a vantage point where she had a clear view of the creature and James Bradley. "Lights FULL!" She demanded and the lights flared up around her, the creature shrieked in pain as his skin pitted and burned there in front of her own eyes.

Jack then started shooting, James Bradley hit the floor again as her bullets and pulse blasts hit the creature. "No!" Doctor Johnston screamed as Jack turned on her heel and sprinted out of the room, only to be tripped by the Doctor as she passed the door.

She hit the floor, her momentum causing her to slide across the polished tile floor, her weapons going flying as her head cracked off the opposite wall to the door and her world was plunged into darkness.

---

"She killed it." Dr. Johnston said mournfully for what must have been the hundredth time and James Bradley gritted his teeth as he made sure that his prisoner was securely shackled in the cell that he had prepared for her. The scientist was wearing very thin on the Merc's nerves.

"So? You got one once, I'm sure you can get another. I told you how much Riddick is worth and you'll get 10 of that." James Bradley snapped. "Wanna dig the bullet out of her leg for me and stitch up her arm. I can't have my bate dying on me quite yet."

"I'm not that kind of doctor." Dr. Johnston protested.

"You had better learn then 'cause after I've got this freight into space, you got my shoulder to patch up too." James Bradley handed the man a large metal briefcase before standing and leaving the room.

Things had not gone as planed but at least he had her. Right? But what if she was telling the truth that she had indeed parted ways with Riddick for the final time. He wasn't the type of man, he was sure, to chase after a woman that didn't want him, not matter how alluring she may have been to him, but would he still come for her?

There were many things about that man that he hadn't expected to learn. Things like his disgust with the abuse of children, his distaste for rape and the fact that he had protected and even loved a member of the human race. He hadn't expected to hear how he had saved his hostage's life twice on T2 and numerous other times, taking bullets and acquiring scars for her sake.

Were those actions, the actions of a man who would not come for her?

James Bradley secured himself in the pilot's seat and continued to try and work out the murder's next move. All of his careful planning was going to go to waste if the girl as telling the truth. He would be left with an innocent prisoner on his hands that he couldn't just say had been brutalized by the criminal she _thought_ she could trust. His plan was going to be shot full of holes if Riddick wasn't as attached to her any more as he had thought.

His plans were being screwed with and it wasn't the first time since James Bradley had started this hunt that his planning had been screwed with. Richard B. Riddick was giving him an almighty headache. How one man could be so difficult he just didn't know any more. This was becoming the hunt of his life and he no longer knew if he was enjoying it or not.

"This is James Bradley of _The Alliance_, departure code Alpha Two Five Seven Brava Charlie Echo One Brava, requesting permission to take off." James Bradley radioed the Tower as he continued to prep his ship.

"Affirmative _Alliance_, you are cleared for take off, depart from lane nine, departure time seven minutes and counting down." The response from the Tower came quicker then he had anticipated but the surprise that that caused was a pleasant one. It seemed that the gods were smiling on him at that moment.

Seven minutes and things would start getting interesting.

That girl was going to get it when she woke up. There would be questions and pay back, plenty of pay back. It would start right after they got into space and on a direct heading, that and after the good doctor had patched the hole in his shoulder that he had casually packed in gauze to save him bleeding out too much before it was safe to take care of it properly.

He settled his hands on the controls, prepped his engines until all four of the lights on the panel above his head had turned from amber to green. He taxied up to the mouth of lane nine and only when he got the call to the affirmative did he reach above his head, pressing all four of the corresponding switches to the lights.

His engines roared to life as he pushed the leaver that controlled power to it's _FULL_ mark and with the hum of take-off buzzing in his hears as they punched through the atmosphere of the planet, all he heard was a woman's moaning cry and the doctor's nervous apology.

"So the wench has woken up." He whispered and chuckled as he started plotting the course and inputting it into the ship's autopilot.

---

Fear rippled through John's skin, making his nerves tingle in response to every movement that the women who were intent on following his every move as they walked into yet another ally way close to the research building. This was the fourth ally that they had checked out, looking for the backpack that Jack had said that she had left behind but that it was important to get that backpack back to her family if anything went wrong.

He didn't know why it was important to find and retrieve it but the fact that it was on Jack's mind when someone was trying to shoot her full of holes made him search for it in earnest. If it had been important to Jack then, it would be even more important now. It killed him though, to think of his own cowardess in that room with the bullets flying over head but at least he could honestly say that there had been nothing that he could have done ten minutes earlier when he had watched the doctor and the bounty hunter, both heavily armed walking down the street, an unconscious and bound Jack with them.

Sweat was slowly but steadily drenching his shirt as with the help of the two sisters he pulled apart another section of alleyway in search of the backpack. Time was running out for Jack and he was the reason that she had even gotten into trouble in the first place. His own cowardess made him feel sick inside and the more he played events over in his head, the worse that gut wrenching feeling got.

"I've found it!" Laura let out the shout and soon all three of them were gathered around the backpack, looking at it as though they had found some great hidden treasure. There was a mixture of great anticipation and worry on their faces along with curiosity. What could the backpack contain that was so vital?

"Thank the gods!" John bit his lip as he unzipped it, rummaging around inside until he found a pre-stamped, addressed letter, the address clearly in Jack's handwriting. He frowned and turned it over and over in his hands. It was addressed to Kelly and Jonathan Marks; it would have been why the backpack was suddenly important.

"Who are Kelly and Jonathan Marks?" Kirsten asked reading the names over his shoulder and breaking him out of his own thoughts about what the letter might contain.

"Her dead fiancé's brother-in-law and older sister. They are pretty much all she has left for family now." He explained, tucking the letter away in his pocked and re-sipping the bag. "Go home, rest and get some sleep. You have to try and forget that any of this ever happened. Don't mention it to anyone, do you understand?" He said calmly wondering at why Kelly's name was on the front. It was common knowledge that she was a wanted criminal; it was also common knowledge that her own family didn't even know where she was. Maybe things had changed.

"I'm coming with you. The information that my sister and I have may be helpful in getting Jack back to that family of hers." Laura frowned, planting her hands on her hips and scowling at him.

"No. It's not safe for the two of you to be involved. There are others involved in this that might kill me for my involvement and you don't need to be killed along side me." He shook his head, his guts twisting as he thought about that and started sweating heavily once more. Riddick really was going to kill him when he found out about this… that was, if Jack hadn't been telling the truth.

"I'm not going to argue with you. I'm coming and so is Kirsten. That's the way it is." Laura was stubborn and folded her arms, giving him a level look. "You can either stop arguing and make this easy or we can do it the hard way." John sighed but said nothing, just looked down at his feet. Why could he not just assert himself?

"Well, if we're going with, just pray that Riddick really has split because if not, we all might be in very big trouble!" Kirsten shook her head voicing John's one real concern.


	29. Bait

Chapter 29: Bait.

Johnny was closing up when the commotion kicked up outside _Zion_. Kelly looked at him from where she was sitting on the floor, Candace helping her count credits away while Riddick finished off prepping _The Gemini_ and picked up Jack from the flat. They were supposed to drop by and say their final farewells before heading for the airfield.

The teenager had grown quite attached to the falsely accused convict and her family to the point where it was actually hard for her to leave them behind but then she knew that it was for the best. If she didn't leave, Jack would be in even more danger and she would never find her father and she was desperate to see her father again.

Candace stood up, dusting off her jeans and moving to stand by Johnny as the sound of doors opening caught her attention. A woman was first to come into view, followed by Kirsten Leal and John from _The _ _Aurora_ Candace stiffened and pulled back slightly her lip curling as she watched them hurry forward, Jack's backpack firmly in the young engineer's hands.

"We're closed guys." Johnny held up his hands.

"Are you Jonathan Marks?" The woman Candace didn't know was the first to speak.

"Why are you here?" John asked Candace, startling her.

"I'm waiting for Jack." Candace answered slowly.

"I'm Jonathan Marks. What can I do for you?" Johnny sent Candace a look to tell her to keep her mouth firmly shut from that moment forward.

"Jack told us to find you if anything went wrong and things have gone very wrong." John answered looking grim.

"What do you mean?" Johnny asked as Kirsten looked at Candace.

"Is Riddick still here?" Kirsten asked her moving a step closer.

"How the hell do you know about Riddick?" Candace snapped taking one step back.

"Because a Merc called James Bradley is after him. He's caught Jack; she's to be bait in a trap they're setting up for him on T2. She didn't look so good when they were carting her off either." Kirsten answered her. "She told us where to find her backpack and told us to deliver it to Kelly and Jonathan Marks at _Zion__."_ John held out the letter and the other man took it and opened it.

"How the hell did he get his hands on Jack? She was under orders to stay where she was." Candace looked up at Johnny in shock. "Help me understand this please."

"Dr. Johnston and I smuggled one of the creatures that stabbed you off the planet and to a research facility not so far from here. Mr. Bradley appeared and offered the good doctor a cut in Riddick's bounty if he helped him catch Jack to be bait to catch Riddick. My sister and I were held hostage, which is how John was brought into the picture. Anyway, Jack turned up to kill the thing and got caught. Now we have to do something about it. We're just wasting time here talking!" Kirsten tried to explain.

"No actually, we're not. Jack doesn't want us to do anything about it." Johnny shook his head as his eyes scanned the letter that John had given him the frown on his face deepening with each scan his eyes took.

"What!" Besides Candace and John's exclamations of surprise there was also a pained yell from Kelly behind the bar.

"Read the instructions Kel, no going after her. She's left a copy of her will and there's a letter there for Riddick too, it seems she had a feeling that she wasn't coming back from this one." Johnny answered a note of defeat in his voice.

"We're not really going to leave her to her fate? They will eventually kill her, you do realise that right? If we don't do something she is going to die. No question about it." John looked at him dumbfounded. "That's not right."

"But it's what she wants." Johnny shrugged.

"No one wants that!" Candace yelled at him, not caring if she was making a scene.

"But she wants Riddick free. If he goes after her, she'll die anyway and he'll end up in slam." Kelly explained softly.

"No way! Do you think that Riddick will really buy that bullshit? Jack saved you didn't she? Don't we owe it to her to save her? Come on, look at all the shit she's done for us!" Candace was shaking where she stood. "If we leave her to this, we're just as responsible for killing her as Bradley. You want that kinda blood on your hands cause I sure as hell don't."

"Watch it kid, you're about to step over the line!"

"He won't leave her to them, you know he won't!" She snapped harshly, glaring at the Marks. She was angry and their denial of the situation wasn't helping matters in anyway. Did they really think that they were doing what was best?

"Maybe he will, maybe he won't." Kelly shrugged. "He might not have much of a choice in that matter."

"Excuse me then while I make a phone call." Candace glared at the adults. They might have been older then her but she seriously doubted that they knew better then her _all_ the time. She left the club, shoving her hands deep into her jeans pockets and keeping her eyes down, as she glared moodily at the pavement beneath her feet. She took a quick left as she left the club and hurried along the road toward Jack's flat.

"Skulking huh kid?" She didn't even notice the fact that Riddick had fallen into step with her until she was addressed.

"Oh, God, Ri-" His hand flew over her mouth as a couple walked by them.

"You know better then to say my fucking name in public." He hissed and pulled her down a side ally. "Now, what's got you so fuckin' worked up?"

"Jack's in trouble and they're all just going to leave her to be fucking bait." Candace said hurriedly as tears brimmed in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. "There's some dumbass letter and shit saying that you're not to go after her but we can't just leave her to die 'cause he will kill her _eventually_ unless someone does something about it first."

"What the fuck are you talking about? What's happened to Jack?" The look on his face was murderous and Candace swallowed hard, suddenly very afraid for herself. "OUT WITH IT!" He bellowed giving her a hard shake that didn't help to loosen the knot in her tongue, she just stared wide-eyed and petrified back at him.

"A merc and the doc we transported set a trap for Jack." John's voice said from behind Riddick and suddenly a blade was at his throat and his back was pressed up against the ally wall. John's skin paled, a sheen of sweat breaking out on his forehead. "Jack got tripped up and hit her head on a wall; she was in pretty bad shape when we saw her being shuffled away on a hover-stretcher. She told us if anything went wrong to find her family and deliver her backpack to them, she never told us what was in it."

"And Johnny says we can't go after them, says she doesn't want us to so we can't." Candace looked and felt genuinely distressed; not only because of Jack's capture but also because of the way that Riddick was currently behaving. She didn't know what to do; all she knew was if they didn't act soon there was no way that they would be able to track those men down on time.

"Where are they now?" Riddick asked the man he had pinned to the wall.

"Jack? I dunno, I think they're taking her back to that planet – I think, I'm not sure." He gulped as that blade pressed harder on his neck, not enough to break the skin yet but enough to frighten him further.

"Where are the Marks' Candace?" Was his next question directed at her but he never took his eyes off the engineer in front of him.

"Kelly and Johnny are back at the club with everyone else. Damien has gone to get Joe, I think. We have to do something Riddick." She said as she looked down at the concrete she was standing on, quickly using her sleeve to wipe away at the tears that were being a little too persistent in falling.

---

"Shit's hit the fan Joe." Damien said as he ran through to the man's workshop. Joe lived in a top floor apartment in a building where he was the landlord and the only tenant, the first floor apartment he used as a guesthouse and the middle was his workshop where he mixed and brewed his many types of homemade drugs.

"Shit's always hitting the fan with your folks." He said dismissively but when Damien continued to stare at him he sighed. "What's gone and happened now?" Joe asked as the lad fingered a couple of viles and looked nervously at the ground. Joe frowned, Damien was a forward kind of kid and the way he was going about this whole thing made old Joe nervous and with the man's disposition it didn't make for a good mix.

"It's -." He sighed.

"Out with it!" Joe ordered, his finger's already itching to close around the handle of the get away bag that he kept at the door encase he had to duck and run quickly.

"Jack'sgotherselfcaughtbymercs." Damien said so quickly that it all came out as one jumbled up word.

"Come again?" Joe kept his voice low and even.

"Jack's got herself caught by mercs." He managed to speak more slowly this time around. "They don't know about her killing Lang, at least we don't think they do, from what we can gather they think they can use her as bait to catch Riddick…" Damien wasn't allowed to say anymore before the other man jumped in.

"Alright, I'll get my things, what's the plan? How many party packs am I going to need this time?" Joe turned off the Bunsen burner he was using and reached for his jacket.

"No point reaching for your gear." Damien shook his head.

"What?" Joe was sharp this time as he turned.

"Jack had a feeling so it seems, she's left a letter and her will." He said quietly.

"Her what?"

"Her Will." Damien repeated.

"What does that mean?" Joe demanded.

"That we're not to go after her, they're after Riddick and you know how much Jack feels responsible for Riddick, she'll die before she lets him go back to slam. The letter says that no one is to go after her, she doesn't want him or my mother caught so we've just to leave her to her fate."

"And how did Riddick take that news?" The strung out man seemed to pause for a moment.

"I don't know, he wasn't there, it was Candy who found out first and she didn't take it well at all. Ran out of there in a rage because Dad was thinking that he's going to enforce the following of Jack's wishes. He's worried about mom too I think." The boy looked tired, defeated as he looked at the dealer. There was a trust between the two for them that went deep; Damien had ran for the dealer for a long time before Kelly and Jonathan had made him their son, all because Joe had pushed Damien in their direction.

"Then we are going to have to change Johnny's mind aren't we? No one is going to fuck with Jack and not pay for it." Joe said with a shrug.

"We might not have a choice; dad can be very stubborn sometimes."

"I have a feeling that Riddick won't follow his lead however much it might be for the best. Jack'll be pissed as hell if we go after her, she's doing what she thinks is best for her family." Joe said but more to himself then to Damien.

"But letting her die is not what's best for her family." Damien snapped.

"You're not an adult kid, you don't have kids. It'll take you a few years yet to understand." Joe said picking up two bags at a somewhat leisurely pace, one was his emergency bag that held a few changes of clothes, all of his recipes and the names and contact details of his customers, the other Damien was not sure of at all.

"Ready?"

"Lets go have a chat with Johnny."

---

"Joe?" Johnny almost looked relieved when Joe walked in the door flanked by his adopted son. Candace didn't blame him, since she had arrived back at the club, the man had been under constant stress as Riddick prowled and paced after all the information that could be given by anyone had passed to him, in some cases twice or three times over again.

"I've already been informed and I think you're crazy." Joe said as Damien slunk behind the bar. "She's had our back for nearly 2 years, maybe longer then that, I dunno. It doesn't sit right with me letting her go off and be killed because we took the word of some letter."

"She'll kill us."

"Lets hope she had the opportunity to." Kelly said, voicing her opinion for the first time openly.

"You think we should go?" Johnny looked over at his wife a look on his face that almost pleaded for her not to go against him, not to decide that it was best to go against Jack's wishes.

"No." She shook her head. "I'm going, Riddick's going and we're taking Joe with us if he is agreeable. Damien and Candace will stay here with you Johnny and keep up pretences. I don't give two what that letter says, when you're held captive all you want is for someone to sweep in there and find you. All noble intentions go out of the window when your own survival is threatened. Trust me."

"And what good do you think that you're going to be to a rescue effort?" Johnny asked somewhat cruelly but there was fear at the edge of his voice.

"I can pilot well enough and we all don't know what state Jack'll be in, Joe and I will be able to doctor the worst." She answered. "I don't need the use of my legs to be useful Jonathan."

"You're not going after Jack Kel, I'm sorry but I'm not going to let you." He said with a firm shake of his head.

"Well someone needs to look after the kids and be a legal front for the business. Remember I can't be the later." She said. "You in Joe?"

"I'm not leaving her in the hands of some Merc." Joe said with a shrug and put his metal case on a table. "Count me in."

"I'm not being left out of this. I got her into this mess, I'm going to have a hand in getting her out!" John said suddenly and uncharacteristically asserting himself and then looking around nervously afterward.

"And why the hell do the kids have to stay at home?" Damien snapped.

"I aint fucking staying!" Candace glared at them.

"Yes you are!" Johnny and Riddick said forcefully at the same time.

"You'll need me, I'm probably the one who knows the planet the best. No offence Riddick but I was there for months during the continuous day. I have a feeling I know where they've taken her." Kirsten said.

"And she isn't going without me." Laura shook her head stubbornly.

"No, everyone is not coming!" Riddick roared above all the arguments. "The more people that come the better chance of a screw up. Johnny, John and Joe came come, Kirsten there is a spot for you but only you, do you understand you are the last. Candace and Damien, you _are_ staying here with Kelly and Laura can help you front the club if she wants to be helpful."

"But she doesn't know anything about the business." Kelly protested.

"Then teach her. The other option is that I go alone and you all sit back here and worry. Either way, she's not being left to that Merc." Riddick had a look of stone cold fury on his face and they all knew that there was no point arguing further.

---

She didn't know how long she had been there, it may have been days for all she knew but when she had woken up there had been the roar of unfamiliar engines and she would have had to be a fool not to understand what that meant. They were taking her away from her home, away from her family and most importantly, away from _him._

She wanted to push the man who was trying to stick her up away from her and scream "NO!" but all she managed was a low moan of pain that sounded around the cell she was in. No one would have heard her besides the man next to her and possibly her capture; there was no one to come to the rescues this time. The realisation stuck hard and made her want to suddenly be sick and then before she could make any more conscious movement she felt the extra Gs of life off and she let the pain in her head and limbs send her back into unconsciousness where there was at least the illusion of safety.

---

The tutting and fussing of a man re-dressing the wound on her leg was the next thing that pulled her from her mind but she didn't open her eyes or give any sign that she was at all aware of what was going on around her.

Her arms and legs ached and where the bullets had grazed and penetrated her skin, each opening a nice wound, the one on her leg no longer having a bullet in it and one on her arm and hell, they burned like they were too close to a fire. Her head was pounding as if someone was taking a sledgehammer to her brain and behind her eyelids her eyes felt both dry and scratchy.

Jack could feel the cold, slightly tight metal that encircled both of her wrists but there was no similar sensation around her ankles and in all honesty she was glad that she would at least have a little bit of manoeuvrability when and if she ever found the opportunity to use it.

As her arm was undressed she felt the sting of a needle piercing her skin, thread being pulled through afterward. She sought the darkness that lay in wait for her and let herself fall back into its comforting depth, at least the more rest she got the quicker her recovery would be.

---

"Watch what the fuck you're doing! You trying to permanently damage me?" James Bradley snapped and then there was a groan of pain from the same man. A satisfied kind of smile appeared across her lips as she sat up slowly. She had to fight the pain in her head as she heard Bradley curse again and snap at his associate. "I thought that you said you were a doctor."

"How many times must I remind you that I am _not_ that kind of doctor? I have told you many times already. At least the girl didn't have a fit about my mending." Dr. Johnston's voice answered him back.

"That's because I didn't have a fucking choice in the matter!" Jack yelled so that she was sure they had heard her.

"Shut the fuck up!" Both men yelled simultaneously.

"Only if I feel like shutting up am I going to shut up." She yelled right back but knew that it was a lame come back. She carefully swung her legs over the edge of the pallet she was laying on and stood up, testing the length of her bindings before sitting down again, her head spinning slightly.

It was a fine fucking mess she had gotten herself into. Riddick was going to have a thing or two to say when he found out that the only reason she had gotten herself caught in the first place was because she had ignored a man on the ground. And now she was in probably the worst trouble of her life and was injured on top of that. _'Clever girl Jackie, clever girl.'_ She shook her head as the door creaked open to her holding cell.

James Bradley walked in with a smirk on his face and she glared at him. "You could have at least made sure I had a glass of water to wake up to." She shook her head at him, a look of disgust on her face. "Not a very good host are you Mr. Bradley."

"I'm not here to play host to you Miss Stewart." James Bradley answered her. "But there are things that you can do to make your own stay with us more pleasant for yourself."

"Oh?" Jack looked at him.

"Tell me how to get in touch with Riddick." He cut quickly to the chase and she glared at him.

"Can't do that." She shook her head.

"Tell me where he is now." His demanding tone got a little stronger.

"Can't do that either." She answered with a shrug.

"Do you know where he is Jack?" It was the first question she had been given and she made herself hang her head like he had stuck a raw nerve.

"Somewhere in space probably." She said after a moment or two of tense silence. Her answers were irritating him and she knew it but then, she couldn't and didn't exactly want to give him the satisfaction of answers that would help him in anyway.

"I'm loosing my patience with you Jack. I want answers from you and I want them now!" He glared at her, his hand twitching at his side. She couldn't help but feel a little bit of fear, he was less then a moment away from hitting her out of sheer frustration and there was nothing that she could do about it. She gritted her teeth and pushed down what fear was there, he was not going to get the better of her.

"Fuck you!" She snapped. "You don't always get what you want Merc. I'm not going to help you catch him and you know it. I'm going to take your ass down, even if you do catch him, you realise that your ass is going to land in slam with his for kidnapping and assault and unlike him you won't last for two seconds."

"And you for breaking and entering." James Bradley answered right back.

"Woohoo! Nice scare tactic Jamie boy." She let a loose hollow laugh escape her throat, her eyes mocking. "I could care less about prison, prison is prison, I'd be out soon enough unlike you because the inmates will tare you limb from limb when they find out you're a Merc and trust me, I would make sure they would find out exactly who you are."

"Or I could kill you. Add you to the long list of Riddick's kills and paint a picture of a heroic young woman who was grossly mislead by the man who gained her trust." James Bradley gave her a triumphant look.

"There are people out there who know better Merc and I can promise you that you'll be dead in a year if you spin out a cock and bull story like that." She crossed her legs as she looked at him expectantly, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg from the stitches in her thigh. The look on her face telling him that she wasn't afraid of his threat. It was a lie, the biggest put on of her life. Jack was terrified.

"Then maybe I should just kill you now!" He pulled a gun out from his side, her own glock to be exact and levelled it at her. Jack froze for a second, her mind working over time on a way to get herself out of the hole she had dug for herself.

"If I'm dead, you'll never catch Riddick." She said with a shrug.

"So you're going to cooperate then?" She had hit on the only reason that she was still alive in the first place.

"No." She shook her head. "But then you won't be a murderer."

"As you yourself know, I already am a murderer. Killing you isn't going to change that." And the Merc aimed and squeezed the trigger.


End file.
